Wings of Hate and Fate
by thEcrEAtOr23
Summary: He hated her. She was arrogant, sarcastic, and mortal. But fate had other plans for them... Caius/OC
1. Prologue

Prologue

I don't pay attention to Aro as he rambles on about how he first met her. I simply stare into her gorgeous red eyes that are glistening with tears as she recites her vows. I cannot understand why she chose me to be her mate, but she did. Now we are standing in front of a "minister" about to be wed.

"Caius, do you take this women to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

I continue to stare into her gorgeous red eyes. They gleam childishly as she waits to hear those two words that will make her mine forever. I remember the day that we first met, hating each other the moment we laid eyes on each other. Hate at first sight. But fate had other plans for us. It twisted my views of the world, teaching me the long lost emotion of love.

I like to think of just how far that we have come…

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**Yeah, I know it's short. Not all chapters will be like this, I promise. Yes, this is a companion fic to my previous story "Wings of Love", but it is not necessary that you read it. This is basically the same story, but old through Caius's point of view (since so many of you requested it).**

**To all my old followers, welcome back to my craziness.**

**To all my new followers, you have just been sucked into a black hole of never-ending fangirlness :)**


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

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After the idiot Cullen boy left after his plea for death, the rest of the day was uneventful. The usual vampire criminal spat words of hatred at me as I snapped his head off.

"One day, the Volturi will crumble," he spat at me as I grabbed ahold of his neck.

"When this day occurs, please notify me," I snarled. With one swift motion, I dislocated his head from the rest of his body. I left the body for one of the guard to handle and sat back down onto my throne. Aro continued to ramble on about a new law that needed to be enforced, while Marcus sat on his throne with a bored and distant expression.

_Marcus. After Didyme's death, he had become solemn and depressed. He rarely spoke and seemed to give up on caring about the rest of the world. How could someone like that become a leader? Sure, he had an "incredible gift", but he showed no ferocity. _

_Aro was a different story. He behaved in such a childish manner; changing his mind ever five minutes. Why was he viewed as the head of the Volturi? If it was not for my lack of gift, I could be ruling the entire vampire race!_

One of the head guards, Demetri walked gracefully into the room. After a polite bow, he said, "Master, the Cullen boy plans on revealing himself for the mortals in five minutes, at noon."

Suddenly interested, I snapped my attention towards Demetri and asked, "How did you come by this information?"

"I saw him standing underneath the clock tower, master. After his pathetic speech, I can only assume that he plans to reveal himself, giving us no choice but to execute him," Demetri said formally.

"You are very clever, Demetri," Aro said. "Have Felix accompany you to wait by the clock tower, see what happens and report back to us."

"Very well, master," he replied as he went to find Felix. After he had left, I turned my head to Aro and asked, "Will there be another execution today?"

"There may be, brother," Aro said solemnly. "It is such a shame. The boy has a wonderful gift."

"Yes, it is such a shame," I said venomously. "But the boy is arrogant. He believes far too much in his stupid mortal 'love'."

Aro said nothing, but I could tell what he was thinking. He hoped that the mortal girl, who was immune to the boy's gift, would accompany him. _I do not understand Aro's fascination in vampire gifts. You do not need them to be feared and respected. I have no gift, yet I am both. _The clock struck twelve and everyone anxiously waited for Demetri's and Felix's arrival. After a few minutes, Aro sent Jane to see what was taking so long. Moments later, Jane returned with not only Demetri, Felix, and the Cullen boy, but another Cullen brat and a scared mortal girl.

"You were asked to bring back one, yet you bring back two and a half. Impressive," Alec said as his sister strutted into the room.

"You must be Bella Swan!" Aro exclaimed as he looked at the scared mortal girl. "I have heard much about you through Edward's thoughts. It turns out the lovely, Bella, is alive!"

_Amazing observation, brother. _The other Cullen brat spoke up. "Yes, it was all just one big misunderstanding."

"That is excellent," Aro said. I could sense the next question as it lingered in the back of his mind. "It is most peculiar that she is immune to join gift. Would you mind if I test mine on her?"

"Ask her," the boy snarled. Aro walked over to the mortal girl, Bella Swan, and held out his hand. I saw the Cullen brat sooth the pathetic mortal's nerves. _Pathetic. _Hesitantly, the girl placed her hand into Aro's could palm. The room was silent as everyone waited to see if the girl's gift worked.

"Remarkable," Aro muttered. "It seems that you are immune to my gift too. Would you mind others trying? Jane?"

The Cullen boy's eyes narrowed as he snarled, "No."

_Why would we listen to you? We are your superiors! You obey us! _Obviously, similar thoughts flooded through Felix's mind as he attacked the arrogant boy. Jane, who looked quite displeased, broke up the fight by torturing the Cullen boy. He screamed in pain as the mortal started screaming and pleading for Jane to stop.

A loud crash was heard as the double doors were kicked open to reveal a young woman, completely encompassed by flames. She stormed into the throne room, as she made her way straight to the screaming mortal.

"No! Please stop! I'm beg- Casey?" the mortal girl asked confused. "Where were you?"

_Casey. I thought that was a boy's name. Not that it matters. She shall be referred to as "mortal" or "young women" unless another name is given. _The mortal started to inspect the brunette's body as she said, "Yes, it's me. And where I was is not important right now. Who was hurting you?"

"I'm fine, Casey. No one was hurting me," the mortal girl said calmly. _Is flaming young women a common thing in the mortal world today?_

"Oh, I see. You've taken up the hobby of randomly screaming and pleading," she said rolling her eyes. The flames were starting to die down. Only then could I see what the women truly looked like. She had long, blonde hair with blue-grey eyes. _For a mortal, she was quite pretty. No, you mustn't think like that. Mortals are weak and pathetic and __**definitely **__not pretty. _The blonde women's voice broke me out of my thoughts. "Now tell me the truth, who hurt you?"

As calm as before, the younger of the two spoke once more. "No one was hurting _me._ Edward and Felix got into a fight and Jane used her power, of causing people pain, on Edward. She was going to test if it worked on me, but Edward got in the way."

The blonde women turned to see Jane smirking proudly. Before anyone could react, she sent a flaming fireball towards the young guard's head. Being the superior vampire she was Jane easily ducked out of the way before the fireball could burn her to bits. The women seethed with anger as she screamed at Jane.

"HOW DARE YOU EVEN THINK ABOUT HURTING BELLA! YOU ARE AN ARROGANT, SADISTIC BIT-"

"Ahem," Aro coughed, interrupting the women's speech. She abruptly turned and only then did she notice the other vampires around the room. _Simple-minded mortal. _Her eyes quickly darted from each of the three leaders, lingering on me for a second longer. Aro was the first to speak. "You must be Cassandra, I mean Casey, Swan. Edward has told me much about you. May I?" he asked as he held out his hand. _Cassandra. That is a much better Greek name instead of the silly Irish one she goes by. Swan. She must be Isabella's older sister. _

"Just FYI, you won't be able to see anything. I'm a shield like Bella," Cassandra warned. _Two gifts? Fire and a shield? Impossible. Stop bluffing and just let him read your thoughts. _"Just give him your hand, mortal," I demanded.

Cassandra turned to me with a glare in her eyes. Before she could say something reckless and stupid that would probably give me adequate cause to kill her, the Cullen boy gave her a look and she turned her attention back to Aro, and held out her hand. _It looks like Cassandra does have some brains after all._

"Remarkable, I see nothing," my brother said amazed. _What how could that be? One cannot have two abilities when I am left with none! _"Think of the potential she has as a vampire, brothers. Already she can control fire and minds. Plus she has the…" Aro trialed off. _She can control minds too? What kind of mortal is this?_

"Wings," she finished for him. _Wings?_

"Ah! Your wings! May we see them?"

It happened in a matter of seconds. One minute I was scowling at a normal mortal girl, the next thing I knew she had two black wings attached to her back. _What have the Cullens gotten themselves mixed with? _She flapped them a bit as Aro circled around her, completely fascinated with his new discovery. She folded back in and just like before, she casted a "glamour" over our minds so that we can't see the wings.

"Remarkable," Aro repeated.

"Yet the matter of what to do with the Cullens and their…pets…still has not been decided," Marcus said dully. _Thank you, brother. Finally when you participate, it is something useful. _Cassandra looked at Marcus surprised; apparently amazed that he had actually said something.

"The Volturi do not offer second chances," I stated. "They must die."

Cassandra glared at me before she snapped her attention back to Aro. He looked over the group of lawbreakers and said, "Yes, the law does claim you, but I will make an exception if you are willing to join the guard."

"You cannot be serious," I gritted through my teeth. _They are lawbreakers! They must die! I don't care about how great their gifts are!"_

"Can't you see the potential, brother?" Aro asked me before he turned back to the Cullens and their pets. "So, what will it be? Join or die?"

The room was completely silent, except for the irritating sound of the mortal sister's breathing. The Cullen boy was the first to say anything. "Thanks for the offer, but no thanks."

His "sister" was the next to speak up. "I agree with Edward. Thanks but no thank you."

"No thank you," the brunette mortal said weakly. The three of them turned to Cassandra with worried expressions. _As if she would actually join the Volturi. As if I would actually allow her to join the Volturi. _Cassandra ignored the worried stares and bluntly said, "No." The Cullen brat gave her a stern look and she reluctantly added on. "Thank you. No thank you."

"Ah, such a waste," Aro said as he prepared for an execution.

"Wait!" the seer cried out. "Bella will be a vampire!"

Aro walked over and took the vampire girl's hand. After he finished viewing the vision, he turned to Cassandra and said, "But what abrupt Miss Casey? She was not mentioned in the vision."

"I would be changed into a vampire, but…um…we are unsure how the venom will react with my…different DNA," Cassandra said. _She is obviously lying. Though, only and expert liar, like me, would be able to tell. _The answer satisfied Aro, and he let the group leave peacefully.

"Goodbye, young ones. We all hope to see you again in the future," he called out as they left. _Sadly, brother, you are mistaken. I hope to never see them again. _As the group of criminals left, Demetri Heidi returns with the newest "tour group".

"Welcome to the Volterra castle! Dig in!" Aro exclaimed as everyone began to dig in. I jumped on top of a young girl and sunk my fangs in her next. She screamed in agony as I slowly drained the blood from her feeble mortal body.

_We are superior. Mortals will always be nothing but a food source. And that is the way it always will be._

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**If you couldn't tell, this is in Caius's point of view. I decided to make their trip to Volterra all one chapter, instead of three. Please follow/favorite/review/PM! **

**~thEcrEAtOr23**


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything**

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**Chapter Two**

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_One year later…_

I stomped through the halls of the castle furiously. I heard Aro as he called my name, but I didn't stop. Not until I reached my quarters. _How dare he insult me in such a manner!_

"Brother, it was only meant to be a joke," Aro called through the door. _A joke? He thinks that an albino insult is a joke? _I flung open the door angrily. "Never joke about that again! And why do you insist on calling me 'brother'? We are not brothers! Yes, we may be related, but we are not brothers. Only Athenodora has the right to call me 'brother'!"

With that, I slammed the door on his face and sat down in my chair. As I began my daily work, I thought about Aro's insult. Technically, it wasn't _his _insult; it was one from a mortal. He was caught trying to escape feeding time. When he was found and brought before us, the ignorant mortal asked, "Are you albino?" Aro merely laughed and said; "Only one of us is." Seething with anger at the obvious insult, I stormed out of the throne room. The rest is history.

I looked at the empty journal sitting on my desk. Aro gave it to me to help with my "anger issues". _I need help. And I do not have anger issues. _Though I was opposed to ever touching the stupid book, it became more and more tempting. Eventually, I grabbed the book and scribbled down my, and I quote, "thoughts and feelings".

_**I believe Aro gave me this book to write in. Though that is the stupidest and most mundane thing I have ever heard of, I thought I might as well give it a try.**_ _**Today, my "brother" made an albino joke. Though I am far more superior and above such trivial matters, the joke still hurt. In a way. But I will go off and sulk about it in a corner. That would be weak and pathetic. Instead I shall explain to you, this inanimate object, why I despise albino jokes. **_

_**You see, my twin sister, Athenodora, and I were born in Greece into a high-standing family. When we were born, we were paler than the average Greek, and had pink eyes. My father was ready to throw us out on the streets, but our mother insisted to wait and see if we were to grow out of it. Years went by, and nothing happened. Our eyes remained pink, our skin remained pale, and our hair became an odd white-blond shade. My symptoms were far more severe than Athenodora's. The leaders of our government consulted in secret and forced mother and father to throw me out onto the streets, leaving me for the darkest demons of Hades realm to claim me as one of their own. Athenodora was lucky. She got to stay an extra three years before being thrown onto the streets. I knew that we couldn't stay in civilization so we ran away into the nearby forest. We lived for several years, until we had both reached the age of twenty-five, before the beasts came. They were huge wolves which, at the time, we thought were sent from Hade's realm to claim us. We fought them valiantly, but one of the wolves attacked Athenodora and ripped open her stomach. Being held back by the beasts, there was nothing I could do but sit and watch. That was when two cloaked figures showed up. They helped me fight off the creatures. The two of them had remarkable strength and speed. One bent over Athenodora and bit her in the neck. She started screaming in pain. The other one bent over me and also bit me in the neck. That is when I became a vampire. The two cloaked figures, Aro and Marcus, told me about their plans for power. I eagerly agreed and they took me back to their home in Italy. From that day on, I swore revenge on the Children of the Moon for destroying my sister. I also swore to be merciless to humans, like they were to me.**_

_**I suppose this "helped me with my anger issues". Though it does not make the idea of writing down my thoughts any less stupid. I shall have to keep this hidden somewhere so it doesn't fall into the wrong hands.**_

I stared at what I just wrote, feeling oddly better. _Why does Aro have to be right? No matter, I will simply hide these thoughts from him. He certainly does not need to know about my feelings. _I sighed and continued writing down the annual letter that the Volturi sent to all of the covens, reminding them of our rules. I heard a knock on my door and quickly shoved the book into a drawer. Jane walked in and said. "Master Caius, Heidi has come back with the latest victims and Aro thought it would be smart to tell you."

_Aw, yes. Feeding time. One of my favorite activities besides executions and werewolf hunting. _Jane stood at the doorway, awaiting answer. I waved a hand at her and said, "Yes, of course. I will be there as soon as I have finished this last letter."

"Yes, master," the young guard said. Before turning away, she added, "The human servant is to be executed today. The one that you hate. She believes she is joining the guard, though. Aro always asks whether you would like to do the honors."

I smiled at the thought of finally getting rid of the stupid maid. _She was always finding new, and quite stupid and pathetic, ways to get my attention. It was starting to get annoying. I have no interest in women. Aro always rambles about how much he "loves" Sulpicia. Love. What a stupid thing. There is no such thing as love. It is simply stupid and meager humane hormones that flood your brain. If I were to ever marry, it would be to increase my power. Not because I loved the women. _I turned my attention back to Jane and said, "Yes. Tell Aro that would be excellent. You are dismissed."

Jane nodded once and left the room silently. A few moments later, I reentered the throne room. I pretended like nothing had happened and no one was stupid enough to bring it up. My outbursts are common, so the guard has stopped asking "if I was okay". The last time someone asked me that, we lost a very good guard member. The newest group of idiot mortal tourists came through the doors. I quickly drained a couple, and then went to search for the human servant. I found cleaning in one of the empty and remote corridors of the castle. In one quick motion, I snapped her head off and threw it into the nearby burning fire. With that, I walked back to my study to finish my work.

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**The thought of Caius keeping a diary made me laugh. Like a lot. I don't care if it is OOC. So, the usual follow/favorite/review/PM me! Have a nice Monday (if that is even possible). **


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own, which sucks**

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**Chapter Three**

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_Today is execution day. Today is the day we round up all the vampires that have broken the law and decapitate, burn, and/or torture them. Today is my favorite day of the week._

Jane gathered all the vampires from the dungeons and brings them into the throne room. Alec helped her get them into a line. _It's my turn to do the executions today. Killing the criminals is the best part of my job. That and hunting down werewolves._

After the executions were finished, one of our human slaves came in and handed Aro a letter. _I do not understand why Aro insists on keeping them. Mortals are nothing but a food source. Other than that, they are completely useless_.

"It's from Carlisle. Apparently, they have a vampire disturbance and have asked us to protect Miss Casey," Aro said.

"What about young Miss Bella?" Marcus asks.

"Carlisle has informed me that she is being changed in a week's time," Aro answered. Then he called, "Jane, go prepare a room. I believe we will be having a mortal guest staying with us."

"Right away master," Jane says as she sped away to prepare a room.

_Wait. Did he just accept Carlisle's request? The rude mortal hybrid is nothing but a liability. Am I the only who sees that? _I stormed out of the throne room, ignoring my brother's calls._ When this mortal comes, I swear her life will be a living hell._

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I could smell the mortal before she even entered the room. _Why is her scent so intoxicating?_ She walked in with an irritated expression on her face. The Cullen brat smirked at her as she started to rub her head. _Strange._

"Welcome back to Volterra!" Aro exclaimed, breaking the silence that filled the room.

"Thank you for having us. I assume you read our terms and have agreed to them all, right?" Edward asked. _They are giving us terms?! We are the ones housing the human!_

"Yes, we have read your terms and have no intention of harming Miss Casey," Aro said. _Pity, __I was planning to use a lot of physical abuse._

"Unlike some people," I heard the mortal say under her breath while glaring at Edward.

"To insure her safety, we have established a protector for Miss Casey's six month stay," Aro said. _The mortal is staying her for six months?! Wait. We never discussed a protector. _

"Really?" Edward questioned.

"Indeed. My brother Caius has volunteered his services for the protection of Miss Casey." _What._

I heard a loud thud as the pathetic mortal fainted. _I know mortals are weak, but this is utterly ridiculous. _Cassandra woke up moments later and, to my surprise, apologized. "Sorry about that. A certain someone made me hit my head of the car," she said while glaring at the Cullen brat. _I do not blame him._

"It is quite alright," Aro said.

"I believe my work here is done. See you soon, Casey," the boy said, though obviously very happy to leave.

"Parting is such sweet sorrow," Cassandra said while batting her eyelashes. _That is what I most put up with for six whole months? What did I ever do to deserve this? I will simply refuse to look after the mortal girl. _I heard the doors to the throne room slam shut. The mortal looked around the room. When her eyes met mine, I made sure that my rage and dislike were apparent. Aro broke the silence first.

"It is alright, _giovane._ You can take the glamour off of our minds now," he said. Silently, she took the glamour she put up on our minds, revealing her black wings. "So I hear that you are in a band. Would you mind performing one of your songs?"

"I would love to, but I would need my band here," she admitted.

"That is a shame," Aro said. I rolled my eyes and muttered, "Of course you can't. It is probably better for our ears if you didn't sing since mortals possess no real talent."

Though it is obvious Cassandra couldn't hear what I said, she narrowed her eyes at me. All of a sudden, she seemed to get an idea.

"Wait!" the mortal exclaimed. "If you can find me a non-breakable, preferably plastic, cup, I could do a little something."

_What good could you ever do with a plastic cup? _Aro, of course, is completely intrigued. "Oh really?! Would this work?" he asked holding up a cup Felix just handed him.

"Perfect," the mortal said as she sat down on the floor. After positioning the cup in front of her, she began tapping and flipping the cup in a pattern and began to sing.

_I got my ticket for the long way 'round  
Two bottle 'a whiskey for the way  
And I sure would like some sweet company  
And I'm leaving tomorrow, wha-do-ya say?_

_When I'm gone_  
_When I'm gone_  
_You're gonna miss me when I'm gone_  
_You're gonna miss me by my hair_  
_You're gonna miss me everywhere, oh_  
_You're gonna miss me when I'm gone_

_I've got my ticket for the long way 'round_  
_The one with the prettiest of views_  
_It's got mountains, it's got rivers, it's got sights to give you shivers_  
_But it sure would be prettier with you_

_When I'm gone  
When I'm gone  
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone  
You're gonna miss me by my walk  
You're gonna miss me by my talk, oh  
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone_

After Cassandra finished singing, the throne room began to applaud. All except me. I would never stoop so low as to applaud for a mortal, but I was impressed. As she stood up, she bowed her head as a sort of thank you. _Well, at least she knows some manners. _

"That was amazing! Where did you learn to do that?" Aro asked.

"Ummm…YouTube," the mortal said hesitantly. _What is YouTube?_

"What is this YouTube?" Aro asked mimicking my thoughts.

The mortal looked struggled as she tried to explain what this YouTube is. "It's this…place on the…Internet where people can post videos."

"Internet," Aro asked very interested in this new mortal object.

"I will show you another time," Cassandra said getting out of the conversation.

"Fair enough. Jane, would you escort Miss Casey to her room," Aro asked.

"Right away, master," Jane said obediently. After she led Cassandra out of the room, I turned to Aro and said, "I refuse to look after that stupid mortal. She is loud, rude, and conceited."

"Then the two of you will get along just fine," Aro said with a smirk.

"Or she will annoy me to the point of ripping her head off," I stated.

Aro looked at me sternly. "You will do no such thing. Not unless you wish for me to allow you dear sister to share all of her childhood memories of you to the entire vampire world."

I looked at Aro shocked. _He wouldn't dare. _"Are you blackmailing me?"

"I believe that is what it is called."

"Fine. I will do it," I said storming out of the throne room. I rushed into m study and grabbed the journal Aro gave me and began to write.

_**The idiot mortal, Cassandra, is now staying with the Volturi. I fail to see why we must look after her. No, let me rephrase that statement. I fail to see why I must look after her. Yes, Aro has the audacity the charge me with the responsibility of looking after the mortal. Not only that, but when I refused to do such a task, he blackmailed me! Of course, this left me no choice but to agree to his stupid task. But mark my words; the mortal is going to wish that she never decided to come to Volterra.**_

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**So, how is everybody liking it? I hope you are liking it. If you are liking it and you haven't followed/favorite/reviewed, well you should. That is all I have to say. Have a nice rest of your day, I am off to do chores. **


	5. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own.**

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**Chapter Four**

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I stormed down the hallway towards Cassandra's room. A knocked loudly on her door and waited. When she did not come immediately, I knocked again louder and harder. The door swung open and revealed a very tired looking mortal. She rubbed her eyes and groaned, "What are doing here?"

"I believe I live here," I replied. The mortal seemed to snap back into the world. Looking more awake she said, "Give me 45 minutes and I'll be ready."

She started to close the door, but I stopped it with my hand. She gave me an annoyed look and I glared back at her. "Why do you need 45 to get ready?"

"Since when do you care?" she asked. I gave her a look, telling her to answer my question. She rolled her eyes and began to ramble, "If you MOST know, I plan on showering, doing my hair, and it may take me awhile to choose my outfit…"

Tired of her rambling, I cut her off and said, "Fine. Take exactly 45 minutes and no more."

Cassandra, once again, rolled her eyes and closed the door. I stood outside and waited. Inside, I could hear the shower running and her singing some stupid mortal song. I sighed and banged my head against the wall. _How did I get stuck babysitting her? _Unexpectedly, the door swung open to reveal a very attractive Cassandra. My jaw dropped, but I quickly shut it before she could notice. _No, mortals cannot look attractive. Period. _She raised an eyebrow and asked, "Were you standing here the entire time."

"Yes."

"Stalker," she muttered once I had turned my back and began walking towards my study. She rushed after me, her high-heeled boots clinking against the marble floor in a very irritating fashion. When she finally caught up with me, Cassandra asked, "Are we heading to the kitchen?"

"No. I figure your mortal stomach can wait until lunch," I said stopping to face her.

"But I need Lucky Charms," the mortal said.

"It looks like you're out of luck," I smirked and began to walk down the hall. I heard the human's footsteps come to an abrupt stop. I turned around and called, "Cassandra, move! Cassandra!"

But she remained stock still; frozen in place with her eyes filled with panic. _Something is wrong. _"Jane!" I called out. The young guard member rushed to my side. I told her to fetch Felix and Demetri. I also told her to go out and buy a mortal product called "Lucky Charms". She nodded and sped down the hall. Moments later, Felix and Demetri picked up Cassandra and carried her shaking body to the kitchen. Aro and Marcus heard the commotion and came down the hall and to the kitchen with me. When we arrived, I saw the mortal sitting down eating some cereal that was supposedly "magically delicious". Demonstrating very poor manners, Cassandra said, "Thanks, Jane. You're a life saver."

"I would say that Jane did an excellent job," Aro said. The mortal snapped around at the sound of Aro's voice. "What happened to you my dear?"

"I had a panic attack," she explained. "I have a disorder called OCD. It basically means I freak out over little things."

"What kinds of things bug you?" Marcus asked. I scoffed and Cassandra turned to me and raised an eyebrow. Her eyes flamed, as if she were daring me to make that noise again. _Is she threatening me? How dare she! I am her superior! _When I gave her no reaction, she turned her attention back to Marcus and answered his previous question. "My triggers are unclean or imperfect spaces or objects, things not put away, and not following my daily routines."

Aro asked, "Do one of these routines include eating Lucky Charms?"

"Yes."

"Well, since everyone has calmed down, would you please escort Miss Casey to your room?" Aro asked me. Though I still despised the idea of "protecting" the mortal, I nodded my head and began to walk down the hallway. In a matter of minutes, I have lost track of the human. _No matter. She can simply find her way to my study on her own. _I opened the doors and sat down at my desk. I pulled out my journal and began to write.

_**Today is the first day of babysitting Cassandra. She had, what she called, a panic attack. I believe she was faking it just so she could eat. Alas, I do not know. But it does not matter now. The mortal has managed to get herself lost. One of the guard members can find her and bring her to me. It is not my fault that she could not keep up with me. I must go; I believe I hear someone coming.**_

I quickly hid the journal and began to work on letters. No one entered my quarters for another hour. When the clock struck 11, Aro walked into my room and asked, "Where is Miss Casey?"

"She is in the bathroom," I lied. _Why did I lie? _Obviously not believing me, Aro left the room. I stood up and went to search for Cassandra, who had still not shown up. Miraculously, I found her walking out of the nearby bathroom. I walked up to her and demanded, "Where were you?"

"My dear CayCay," she said with a smirk. _Oh no. _"You were walking too fast for my liking, and I got lost. While searching for you, I went up into a tower and met two lovely women named Athenodora and Sulpicia, or Dora and Sully as I like to call them. We shared some lovely stories, some even had you in it, and fashion tips. Then I left to use the bathroom and that is when you showed up."

Though I did not like her explanation, I felt obligated to accept the answer. _I'm going to kill Athenodora the next time I see her. _I turned to Cassandra and demanded, "What kind of stories did they tell you?"

"Is that embarrassment that I detect?" she teased. I scowled at her and began to speed away down the hallway.

"Caius, would you please slow down?" she asked innocently. I scowled at her again, but I did slow down. Simply because I did not want to hear her whining about it anymore. And that was the _only _reason.

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**So...how do you like it? I hope you like it...I really do...**

**If you do, please follow/favorite/review!**


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do own Twilight :(**

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**Chapter Five**

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The mortal constantly made me stop and wait for her to catch it. It was getting quite annoying. When we _finally _reached my study, the mortal let out an ear-piercing scream. Worried that she is having another panic attack, which I did not want to deal with, I demanded, "Why are screaming?"

"Your room is so clean!" she shrieked excitedly. I looked over my black and red Victorian styled room. Though it is clean, I found no reason to scream about it. "So you are screaming?" I asked confused.

"Okay, you really are clueless," Cassandra explained. "Since your room is so clean, I don't have to spend the entire day cleaning it!"

"Ok…" I decided to let the topic drop. I sat down at my desk and started to review the files of vampire criminals that needed executing. A comforting silence filled the room which I enjoyed greatly. I nearly jumped out of my seat when Cassandra gave a frustrated, "Ahhh!"

"Is this random screaming a habit of yours?" I inquired. _I cannot handle the mortal if this is a common thing for her._

"Sorry. I was just arguing with myself," Cassandra said. _What? _The room fell silent of again before she, once again, broke the silence and asked, "Is there a Starbuck's around here?"

"What is a Starbuck's?" I asked.

The mortal's eyes widened in disbelief and she said, "Only the most amazing coffee place on earth!" _Thank you, that clears things up. _I rolled my eyes and went back to work. "You still haven't answered my question," Cassandra stated.

"How would I know? I haven't left the castle in centuries," I said refusing to take my eyes off the paper.

"Does it get boring?" she asked.

I looked up and drawled, "Does what get boring?"

"Just staying in the castle. Never going outside…never learning about you beloved city…"

"I don't care about mortals. They are nothing but a food source."

"Thanks," Cassandra said sarcastically. Her gaze fell to the numerous bookshelves I had around the room. "Hey, can I read some of your books?"

"Most of them are in foreign languages, but there may be a few in English," I lied. There were actually no books in English, but it would be amusing to watch the mortal struggle.

"Thanks!" Cassandra said hopping up to look at the books. Moments later, she returned with **Belle et la Bête** in her hand. I stared as she sat down on the chair and opened the book. Before she could start reading I said, "You do know that book is in French, right?"

"Yes…"

"And you speak English…"

Cassandra gave me an annoyed look before she said, "_Pensez-vous vraiment que je lisais un livre dans une langue que je ne maîtrisait pas bien?"_

I was truly shocked. I had no idea the mortal could speak French. "_Vous parlez français?" _I asked.

Once again, she rolled her eyes and said, "_Non, je n'ai mèmorisè ces deux phrases en français."_

Irritated by Cassandra's rude attitude, I mutter under my breath in Italian, "_Idiota mortale."_

"_Bene che non era molto bello," _she said pretending to be hurt. _Did she just speak Italian? _I looked at her shocked and she went on, "_Ho dimenticato di dire che sono fluente in italiano? Posso anche tenere una conversazione in spagnolo e russo."_

"That is fairly impressive," I stated. After I realized what I said, I quickly added on, "For a mortal."

"Sure," she sang, obviously pleased that I had complimented her. She read in silence for an hour and a half before she reached the end of the book. I noticed that her hands started to clench the book tightly and her expression became dark. Realizing what she was doing, Cassandra gently set the book down. I gave her a questioning look, but she ignored it and slouched down onto the chair.

"A penny for your thoughts?" I asked. She looked at me surprised. Even I was surprised that I asked her the question, but I was quite curious as to what she was thinking about. After a moment she said, "Happily ever after is the biggest load of crap ever invented."

_That is vulgar language! Wait, what did she just say? Does the silly mortal actually share my views on the stupid saying 'happily ever after'? _Before I could question her further, a sound erupted form the mortal's boots.

_Pigfarts, pigfarts_

_Here I come_

_Pigfarts, pigfarts_

_Yum, yum, yum_

Whatever this "Pigfarts" was, I didn't get the chance to ask. Cassandra reaches into her boots and pulls out a small box. I overheard enough conversation from the guards to figure out that this a "cell phone", a communication device that mortals used to communicate with one another. Cassandra stared at the screen before hesitantly hitting a button to putting the phone up to her ear.

"Casey? Are you there? Have you gotten a vampire boyfriend? Are you still alive?" I heard a female voice say. I raised an eyebrow at the girl's words as Cassandra curse under her breath. Nonetheless, she answered the question.

"Yes, it's me. I am in Volterra. No, I don't have a vampire boyfriend. And I'm pretty sure I'm alive. Let me check."

Another female voice piped up through the phone, "Hey, Casey. Just FYI you're on speaker phone."

"Thanks, Ally," she said. Then pretending to groan, she said, "So who do I have to talk to today?"

The second female voice, Ally, said, "Me, Jackie, Connor, and Logan."

_So Jackie must be the other female. _Cassandra nodded her head, though he was positive that her friends could not see her, and asked, "So, anything new? How are you disguising your wings?"

I heard a new male voice say, "Ally has been changing people's memories so that Jackie and Ally don't appear to have wings. Your way is easier for them, but that is obviously not possible. Sophia is still being annoying a trying to get into the band. Stupid chick won't take a hint. And English has gotten a lot more boring without your awkward faces and know-it-all answers."

Cassandra rolled her eyes and said, "Thanks, Connor. I miss that thing you call a face too."

_So there are more of these bird-humans. And they too have special abilities. That could prove to be useful information. _

"See I told you! Consey will happen!" Jackie exclaimed. I did not want to know what "Consey" was, and Cassandra did not look happy at the sound of the word. Obviously trying to avoid talking about "Consey", she said, "Hey, Logan."

"Hey Bird Brain," I heard him reply. _Lovely friends she has. _

"Enough about us! I want to hear all about Volterra!" Ally said.

"Well, in my entire one day of being here, I have had a panic attack, met the guard, met the wives, and have had Caius assigned as my protector."

"Who's Caius?" Connor asked. Honestly, I am surprised she didn't tell her friends about me.

"Blondie," Cassandra said bluntly. I heard multiple people say "Oh" from the other end as I glared at her. _What is with the mortal and giving me irritable nicknames? _She smiled mischievously at me and said, "Actually, I am with Caius right now. Would you like to meet him?"

She walked over to me and put the phone up to my ear. I listened and heard Jackie say, "Hello Blondie!"

"Hello mortal scum," I said giving her my own nickname. Cassandra's eyes widened as she pulled the phone away from my ear.

I heard her mortal friend say, "What did you just call me? Listen up vampire, I am not-"

"Okay. Jackie calm down. I'll call you later. Bye!" Cassandra said quickly as she hung up the phone. "What the hell?! Why are you so frustrating?!"

"I'm the frustrating one?" I asked in disbelief. _Was she not the one who gives me annoying nicknames? Was she not the one who screams every five minutes? Was she not the one who shoved some strange mortal device up to my ear and forced me to talk to complete strangers?_

"Yes, you are! You just called my friends scum!" she yelled back.

"What's your point?"

"That's not going to make them like you!"

"Why do you care if your friends like me?" I countered back. She opened her mouth, but then quickly shut it. Cassandra made her way to the door, but before leaving she looked me straight into the eyes and said, "I don't know."

It was only then that I noticed her true eye color. It wasn't simply blue-grey as I had thought before. They were much more complex. They were the color of the sea in the midst of a terrible storm. Blue and gray colliding together with a subtle green around the pupil. I mentally cursed myself for letting her crawl under my skin like she did. And that was only the first day.

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**What do y'all think? If you want to tell me anything, review/PM with anything you want to say. I am open to anything as long as it's not _too _hurtful. Or you can just follow/favorite. Or both! **

**Sorry about not translating the French and Italian. If you really want to know, you can Google translate it. That's how I wrote it all. I can barely speak French (last year in school I got an A in Introductory to French, but the teacher sucked so I barely know anything) much less speak perfect French and Italian. I am not that skilled. But I like to pretend that I am! If anyone has actually read this far down on my random A/N, then you are truly amazing. Even I probably wouldn't read this far down. I'm going to stop rambling now. Bye!**


	7. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own**

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**Chapter Six**

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The next few days weren't as bad. I would go to wake Cassandra up, she would have her Lucky Charms, and then we would go to my study for the rest of the day before I sent her off to bed. If the rest of her stay went like that, I would not be as irritated. But, of course, her scent still intoxicated me. Today was no different. Cassandra sat in her chair, which I was going to burn once she left, and read an Italian war tactics book.

"What you workin' on there?" she asked displaying horrible English.

"My penmanship," I drawled sarcastically.

"So what are we going to do today?" she inquired. _Is the mortal trying to irritate me?_

"Why would today be any different?"

"Well, today is Friday, so I thought-"

"Did you say today is Friday?" I asked, cutting Cassandra off. She glared at me for cutting her off and said, "I know you heard me. Vampires have perfect hearing."

"Accidenti Aro per costringendomi a guardare quel dannato mortale," I muttered under my breath as I rushed out the door, certain that Cassandra would follow me.

"Where are we going?" she asked from behind me. Without turning around, I explained, "Today is Friday, the day we execute other vampires. It is unsafe for you in the throne room while this is happening so you can stay with Sulpicia and Athenodora."

"Yes!" she said under her breath.

"I can't believe you were able to befriend them so easily," I thought.

"What do you mean?" _Did I say that out loud? _

"After Didyme died, Sulpicia and Athenodora became very bitter and hostile. They would snap at the guard and go on random killing sprees. Since then, no one has been able to befriend them," I explained. Then quickly added on, "Until you."

"Oh," she said as I took her down the familiar corridor towards the tower. "Can I ask you a question?"

"You just did," I replied, not willing to make conversation.

"That was so funny, I forgot to laugh," she said sarcastically.

"What is your question, mortal?" I asked wanting to end to conversation as soon as possible.

"If Sulpicia is the only one married to a leader, why are they called The Wives?"

"It is easier."

"Oh." We walked up the stairs and I knocked on the door. I heard Sulpicia sigh while the door unlocked. She stood there with half of her hair flat-ironed in the same black-corset gown that she had always worn for the past decade.

"What do you want, Caius?" Sulpicia snapped at me. Noticing the mortal standing behind me, she added, "Hey Casey!"

"Hey, Sully. Is Dora there?" Cassandra asked.

"I'm back here!" cried my sister.

"Hey Dora! I was wondering if-"

"Ahem," I interrupted. All of them turned to me with annoyed expressions. I ignored their looks and said, "I must leave the mortal in your presence. I need to attend the executions."

"That is quite alright," said Sulpicia, flashing the mortal a mischievous smile. Athenodora grabbed the Cassandra's arm and pulled her into the room. Sulpicia slammed the door in my face. _How dare she?_

_I am her superior! _Those thoughts echoed through my head as I made my way to the throne room.

"I am sorry that I am late. I had to deal with the mortal," I said as I sat down on the throne.

"That is alright, brother," Aro said as the criminals were brought into the room. One by one, I watched Aro rip the heads off of vampires. _They deserve this. They dared to defy Volturi law and now they must face the consequences. _After Aro finished the executions, we sat on our thrones and talked about laws. Out of nowhere, Aro exclaimed, "Who stole the cookie from the cookie jar?"

"I stole the cookie from the cookie jar!" I said as I jumped out of my throne. _What am I doing?_

"I WANTED THE COOKIE!" Aro screamed as he pounced on me. We started to wrestle on the ground. _Why am I doing this? Why isn't the guard doing anything? _While I tried to pin Aro underneath me, I saw that the guard was preoccupied by doing some strange dance. The only one who wasn't doing anything was Marcus. I sat on his throne as he looked up at the ceiling with an amused smile. _Marcus is smiling? What is going on? _I suddenly remembered back to a year ago when I first met Cassandra. Aro said she could control minds. _She is dead. _

I stormed out of the throne room and back up to the tower where we keep Sulpicia and Athenodora. When I arrived, Cassandra had a nonchalant expression on her face while the two vampire women cracked up laughing. I looked at the mortal and asked, "What was that?"

"What?" the mortal asked a little too innocently.

"You know what," I hissed.

"I do not know what you are talking about, Caius. We have been in this room the entire time," she said. Her lie seemed believable. Sulpicia's hair was now fully flat-ironed, but I knew better.

"Then why are Sulpicia and Athenodora laughing?" I questioned.

"She just told us a funny joke," Athenodora said. I raised an eyebrow and asked, "May I hear it?"

"Why did the monkey fall out of the tree?" Cassandra asked quickly.

"Why?"

"Because it was dead," she said bluntly. I small smile appeared on my face, before I quickly made it disappear. _The joke was funny, why didn't you smile? Because I will not reduce myself to smile at a mortal's joke. _I regained my composure and said, "Aro requests your presence in the throne room."

A small lie, but I knew he would want to see her, whether he asked me to bring her down or not. I saw the mortal gulp as she followed me back down to the throne room. When we entered the throne room, as I expected, Aro stood up and said, "Miss Casey! It's a pleasure to see you, as always. Could you give us an explanation of your powers?"

Cassandra rambled off everything she could do as I sat down on my throne. "Sure. Well first off, I am stronger, faster, and smarter than the average human. These are traits Jackie, Ally, and I all share. I can go swimming and have it not affect my wings. Only I can do that. As you know, I can control fire. I can also manipulate minds. You won't feel me take over your mind and I can go past shields. That reminds me, I'm also a shield. And, of course, I can fly."

"What other things can your friends do?" Aro asked. After the day the mortal forced me to talk to her friends, I went and told Aro that there were other hybrids like her.

"Jackie can control water and emotions. And Ally controls earth, including weather, and memories," she said.

"Amazing. Would you mind demonstrating your manipulation powers?" Aro asked. _Are you an idiot? You just experienced them first hand!_

Cassandra scanned the room as she said, "No problem. I'll need two volunteers."

"I volunteer as tribute!" Jane shouted as she stepped forward.

The mortal's eyes widened as she said in a ridiculous accent, "Happy Hunger Games!"

The two of them finished together by saying, "And may the odds be ever in your favor!"

"My respect for you just grew immensely," Cassandra said. I gazed around the room only to find that no one else was confused. _Am I the only one concerned for their sanity? No, I am concerned for out top guard's sanity, not Cassandra's. But, what is the "Hunger Games"? _ The human's voice brought me back to reality. "Anyways, since your sister kindly volunteered, why don't you join her Alec?"

Alec nervously obeyed as he went to stand up next to his sister. Moments later, the pair started doing some odd mortal dance. Felix and Demetri joined them for as they made a circle. After a few more transitions of hand motions, Cassandra released them and they went back to their places among the guard.

"Marvelous! Simply marvelous! Wouldn't you agree, brothers?" Aro asked.

"Simply thrilling," I said sarcastically. _Why can I simply mortal possess so many abilities yet I am left with none! It is unfair!_ Aro ignored my sarcasm and asked, "Could you fly for us?"

Cassandra simply spread out her wings and started to fly around the room. She circled the room as few times before she stopped in the center, preparing to go back down. That was when my dead heart stopped. Her wings were spread out wide and the light from the window behind her shined around Cassandra's body like a halo, imitating a well-known picture from a grave prophecy book. _She couldn't be the Angel? She is only a mortal! _But she looked exactly like the Angel from the prophecy, with the exception of her modern mortal clothes.

The mortal landed and gave all of us confused looks. Obviously, Aro noticed the resemblance too because he said in an unusually grave tone, "Jane, please escort Miss Casey back to her room. Everyone else, you are dismissed. I need to privately discuss matters with my brothers."

As Jane walked Cassandra out, Marcus asked, "Do you think she is the one from the prophecy, brother?"

As the doors closed, Aro said, "I don't know, brother. I just don't know."

"Then let us go look at the book!" I exclaimed. They followed me as I stormed into the library and grabbed the ancient prophecy book from the shelf. I flipped it open to the page and stared at the picture. Cassandra's face stared back at me.

Aro looked over my shoulder and said, "So Cassandra is the Angel."

"It seems that way, brother," Marcus said gravely.

"So what does it mean?" I demanded.

"It means Miss Casey is going to have a long road ahead of her," Aro said while rereading the prophecy that was under the picture.

_**On the twelfth moon of October, the Angel will come. She will fill everyone's hearts with love, reminding them of what they once were. But the Angel was not sent from Heaven, but instead raised in Hell. She has the destruction of the world on her fingertips. When the clock strikes twelve on Midsummer's Night, she will have to make a choice that could wither save or destroy life as we know it.**_

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**So, I was nice and decided to reveal the prophecy early instead of waiting forever and ever like I did in the companion fic.**

**Also, someone reviewed, anonymously, that Casey was Mary-Sue and that Caius wouldn't fall for her.**

**1) I must be very Mary-Sue because Casey is completely based off of me **

**2) If they would have read the entire story (since the person only reviewed on chapter one) they would have realized that I made Athenodora his sister. **

**3) It's a fanfic so not everything is going to be canon **

**So, just wanted to get that out of my head. Sorry if somehow the person who said that review is reading this, but you kind of asked for it. **


	8. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight**

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**Chapter 7**

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Cassandra lounged on the velvet chair as she fiddled with her phone. She wiped her hand across the screen as she cut small mortal food items. Though the game seemed utterly ridiculous, that was not why I was staring at her. The mortal was wearing the least amount of clothes that I had ever seen a female wear. Her top had thin straps, that revealed her black bra straps, and it dipped scandalously low. Her bottoms scarcely covered everything that needed to be covered. Cassandra caught my stare and asked, "Is there something wrong?"

"Is what you're wearing even counted as clothing? It barely covers you," I said once again examining her outfit.

"It's called a tank top and booty shorts," she stated.

"Why would you ever where something so…revealing?" I asked searching for the right word. Cassandra looked shocked at my question, but still answered it. "Well, considering it's 95 degrees outside and I'm stuck in a stuffy, non-air conditioned room all day, I thought it would be best to wear this."

I ignored her cheeky tone and went back to my paperwork. _Two vampires are fighting over territory in Monte Carlo again? Is it so hard just to destroy one coven and take the land for yourselves? _I tried to work out the best solution, but I found Cassandra very distracting. She was searching through her pockets in seat for an item. She found the item and stuck the two ends in her ears. She put on a song and began to subconsciously hum along. The song that played sounded nothing like music. All of the instruments were strange and loud. I recognized Cassandra and her friend's voices as they sang about stars. Eventually I asked, "You call that music?"

"It's better than most of the music that is out there," she said defensively.

"I highly doubt that," I said. "I prefer Mozart, Beethoven, Bach-"

The human yawned loudly, causing me to stop mid-sentence. _How dare she? _I gave her an intimidating death glare. For a moment, I considered killing her. Aro would be upset that I killed his human pet, but would eventually get over it. The Cullens would mourn. All expect the boy, Edward who dropped her off. He seemed like he was going to throw a party when he left her here. I could only imagine would he would do if she died. I dismissed the thought and calmed myself down. I refused to look at her while I hissed, "Please put on something else. Anything else besides what you were listening to."

"Okay!" Cassandra smiled as she started tapping her screen numerous times. She smirked and put her "headphones" into her ears. The song began with:

_It's Britney, bitch._

The mortal fell asleep as I sat through hours of hormonal teenage boys sing about how much they love a girl. Then there was the song that wasn't even singing; just really fast talking. I groaned and pulled out the journal.

_**I have never been so miserable in my entire life. She has insisted on playing the most horrendous "music" I have ever heard. I should have not complained about the previous song that was playing. It actually wasn't that bad. I assume it was her band that was singing since I recognized Cassandra's voice. I wish I know how to stop the music from playing, but I have no time to figure out the silly mortal device that is playing the sound. I cannot even call it music. I shall call it the random assortment of sound. The mortal has now become to snore lightly. It is irritating yet…endearing. No, the mortal is not endearing. She is a waste of space that has been shoved into my presence. In no way is Cassandra endearing. That last comment is slightly harsh. She is not a complete waste of space. She is more powerful than most mortals I have met. If I were to kill her, she wouldn't start crying like an idiot. She would probably look into my eyes with the annoying smirk she does and accept Death like it is an old friend. But she is still mortal. And Cassandra is a mortal that refuses to become immortal. I must go now; I sense that she is waking up.**_

The human woke up, but did not stop playing the random assortment of sound. She sat there on her electronic device, tapping away on the screen with her signature smirk. I glanced up at the clock to find that is was only 5:30. I inwardly groaned and decided to call for Demetri early so that the irritating sound could be taken out of my presence. He escorted Cassandra out as the two laughed about something the guard said.

I finished up the remainder of the paperwork before I headed to Aro's study to discuss the prophecy. I entered the lavishly decorated room to find that my co-leaders had already arrived.

"Caius! What a pleasure it is for you to join us!" Aro said as he turned his attention towards me. "How was Miss Casey today?"

"She was being the insufferable mortal that she is," I stated coldly.

"Brother, surely you cannot mean that? I find Miss Casey very lovely," Aro said shocked.

"You are not spending your entire day in her presence."

Aro said nothing, but Marcus gave me a look. _Why does he insist on giving us "intelligent" and "all-knowing" faces? Why can't he just say what he is thinking like the rest of us?_ I sped over to Aro's side and asked, "Could we please move on with this discussion? I still have a problem in Monte Carlo to sort out."

Of course that was a lie. I had already produced a solution to the rivaling covens in the neighboring country. The answer was simple. Propose that the two covens duel for the right to the land. In all likelihood, both covens would kill one another, leaving a lone survivor. He would get the rest of the land to himself and the problem would be solved. I did not understand why vampires bother us, or me since I was the one to solve such issues, with such trivial matters.

"Of course, brother," Aro said, opening the ancient book. "Let us try to interrupt the prophecy."

_**On the twelfth moon of October, the Angel will come. She will fill everyone's hearts with love, reminding them of what they once were. But the Angel was not sent from Heaven, but instead raised in Hell. She has the destruction of the world on her fingertips. When the clock strikes twelve on Midsummer's Night, she will have to make a choice that could wither save or destroy life as we know it.**_

"Let us start with the first line," Marcus said reasonably. "On the twelfth moon of October, the Angel will come."

"That fits Cassandra since she arrived here on October 12th," Aro pointed out. "I will do the next line. She will fill everyone's hearts with love, reminding them of what they once were. I do not see how that fits Miss Casey."

"I do!" I exclaimed, a little more enthusiastic than I meant. "She has befriended Athenodora and Sulpicia. That has been an impossible endeavor for years. She reminded them of what they once were. But I do not understand the next line about being raised in Hell."

"Neither do I, brother. If I remember correctly, I believe I read through Edward's thoughts that she was raised in Forks with her father," Aro said clearly puzzled.

"I'm sure that the question will work itself out later on. If you remember, we do not know much about Miss Casey's past. She could have very well been raised in Hell," Marcus pointed out. "The following line does make sense; about having the destruction of the world at her fingertips. Miss Casey has incredible gifts that, if used in an improper way, could possibly end the world."

"Yes, yes, but it is the next line that worries me," Aro said grimly. "When the clock strikes twelve on Midsummer's Night, she will have to make a choice that could wither save or destroy life as we know it. What choice could be that drastic?"

"How can we even trust the mortal to make the correct decision?" I demanded.

"What do you mean?" Marcus asked, choosing his words carefully.

"I have spent the past two weeks with the mortal! She acts on impulse! She does not think any of her words and actions through!" I shouted. "She will most likely 'destroy life as we know it' because she was hungry and that option provided food!"

"Surely you do not think that way of Miss Casey?" Aro asked.

"I have felt that way about her since I first laid eyes on her a year ago in the throne room," I gritted through my teeth. "She is a stubborn and ignorant mortal that has no filter on her mouth, has a horrible behavior, and seems to find joy in irritating me to no end."

I stared at my companion's shocked expressions. I growled, "If you excuse me, I have some work to do."

And with that, I left the two dumbfounded vampires standing alone in the room.

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**You probably noticed that I usually update both my stories at the same time. I updated only An Odd String of Events because I wanted to have each of my stories have the same amount of chpaters. Slight OCD thing :)**

**Just to let all of y'all know, I will be going to overnight swim camp so I won't be updating any of my stories for a while. **

**As always, let me know how you feel about the story through follows/favorites/reviews/PMs! Have a nice Saturday!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I still do not own Twilight.**

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**Chapter 8**

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_I hate her. Cassandra is a stupid mortal brat that is rude and outspoken. _

That day I had woken her up at 6:00 A.M. because I had important business that needed my immediate attention. I made her eat her stupid Lucky Charms in my study so I could get an earlier start. Due to her mortal clumsiness, Cassandra spilled milk all over my lush carpet, causing it to be stained for eternity.

"It is not removable!" I shout when she said that milk is removable. "This carpet will be eternally stained!"

"Calm your little blonde head off," she said, causing me to get angrier. "If you get me some water and washcloths, I can get the stain out."

I stormed out of the room in search of the items she requested. I found one of the human servants cleaning the hallways. I yanked the bucket of soapy water and washcloth away from him, leaving the terrified mortal against the wall. I returned to the room to find Cassandra in the same spot she was in before I left. I forcefully handed her the cleaning supplies and she got down on her hands and knees to scrub at the stain. _That is right. Remain on your hands and knees. That is where you belong. _In only a few short minutes, the mortal had removed the stain from the carpet. She stared proudly at her work before getting back up. She smirked and bragged, "I told you so."

That is when I snapped. I had put up with the mortal for weeks now. She had been nothing but rude and insufferable to me, even when I tried to be polite. I shouted at her, "THAT IS ENOUGH! I HAVE HAD IT WITH YOUR BRATTY ATTITUDE!"

She glared at me and yelled back, "I'M THE ONE WITH THE ATTITUDE? WHO IS THE ONE ALWAYS GLARING AT ME? OR SCOWLING AND INSULTING MY FRIENDS?"

"YOU ALWAYS GIVE ME A REASON TO!" I defended.

"NAME THREE GOOD REASONS ON WHY YOU SHOULD TREAT ME WITH SUCH LITTLE RESPECT!"

"YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A STUPID, WEAK MORTAL THAT KNOWS NOTHING ABOUT LIFE OR GROWING UP!" I shouted, finally voicing the thoughts that ran through my head for the past week. Cassandra glared at me, hatred burned in her eyes. She came up closer to me and said in a dark voice, "Listen up. I will only say this once, so you better listen. You know nothing about my life. You don't know about the sacrifices I've made for my friends and family. I know you have seen the scars on my body. Those are from people injecting me with needles and tubes. And just remember, I can kill you with a single thought. So I wouldn't be calling me weak. I have been to Hell and back. Trust me when I say this, it is not a place where you want to go."

She turned on her heel and fled the room. I stood in my same spot, my entire body powered by rage. _How dare she insult me? I am a vampire! A king! Her superior! _I sat down in my chair and began to scribble away at the important letter that was still unanswered. I heard and smelt Aro enter my room, but I did not care. I refused to look up at him.

"Brother, were your actions really necessary?" he asked.

"Are you defending, the mortal?" I demanded rising up from my seat.

"I am not on either side. Both of you threw great insults at the other. I believe an apology is in order on both sides."

"I will not apologize! She has been nothing but intolerable since the moment she stepped in to Volterra!"

"Very well," Aro sighed. "But we did figure out something."

"What are you getting on about now?" I asked.

"She said she has been to Hell. According to the prophecy…"

"I don't care about the damn prophecy!" I shouted. "But that seems to be all you care about!"

"Brother-"

"Don't call me that! I am not your brother! We are only distantly related!" I hissed. "While you are off trying to figure out the stupid prophecy, I sit here with the mortal trying to run the entire Volturi. I am the one to answer all the letters! I am the one who solves the problems between clans! And what do you do? Nothing. Absolutely nothing."

"This is your anger talking," Aro said calmly, not at all taken aback by what I had just said. "Give yourself time to calm down."

I glared at his back as he exited my room. _Calm down? I am calm. Is this what I get for finally voicing my opinion! I refuse to be treated in such a way! Refuse! _I threw the book Cassandra was reading up against the wall. It left a dent in the fine wood and I sighed. _I need to hunt. _I grabbed my clock and ran out the door. Nobody stopped me.

* * *

_**It has been a week since my fight with Cassandra. The girl has still not left her room. Some of the guard has listened in to find out what she is doing. Nothing. She does nothing. She just lies there staring blankly into space. From what I have heard, it is because her condition, OCD I believe it is called, has worsened. Apparently, she cannot leave her bed without finding something wrong and having a panic attack. She cannot eat anything. The food the guard leaves for her is later thrown up or it remains simply untouched. This is surely not my fault. I only spoke the truth. The truth can be harsh, but is the truth. When going through life one cannot rely on lies and unspoken truth. Aro has once again pestered me about apologizing to Cassandra, like he thinks it would make a difference. No, the girl shall be the one to apologize to me first. I will decide then if I should apologize. Until then, I shall remain as if I do not care, for I do not.**_

* * *

I strolled through the halls of the castle. The moonlight shone through the skylights, giving the castle an eerie gothic feel. Of course, the castle is Victorian Gothic, but tonight it seems to be enhanced. I did not realize it, but I had made my way down the hall where Cassandra was rooming. I stopped in front of her door, wondering if I should enter.

_Of course not. It would make it look like you care about her. Besides it is improper to enter a lady's room uninvited while she is resting._

_But I must see if the rumors are true. Is she really as ill as the guard claims her to be?_

Curiosity won me over and I entered Cassandra's room silently. That was when I truly saw how ill she looked. Her body had grown thin. It looked like with the slightest touch, she would snap in half. Her face was hollowed out, revealing high cheekbones that I had not noticed beforehand. Though she seemed to be in a deep sleep, dark circles rimmed the bottom of her eyes. The rumors were more than true. Cassandra was in worse shape than I imagined. All of the covers of her bed had been kicked off in her sleep. Before I could leave, she jolted out of bed and gave the most terrified scream I had ever heard. Her face was drenched in a cold sweat as she breathed heavily. She looked around the room and spotted me. It was dark, so dark that I doubted Cassandra could see who I was. Nevertheless, she ran into my person, wrapped her arms around her, and sobbed willingly.

I did not pretend to understand the female's emotions. Though I had never been good at comforting people, since I was the one who usually made them need comforting, I let her embrace me. Without looking at her I asked, "What was the dream about?"

She sighed. In a weak voice she began to explain. "The first scene was about meeting Jackie and Ally. I had been alone for five years and I finally had others like me. Then I felt the Whitecoats injecting me with needles. Then it was Jackie being taken away on her tenth birthday. The hope it gave me to know that I was someone's child. The next part was about my birthday. I was so happy that I would get to leave that place, but then I saw Ally. I couldn't leave her there alone so I sacrificed my freedom so she could go home that day. Finally, it was the pain. It was worse than the last time. The Whitecoats had new things to test me with. That is when I woke up." Cassandra continued to sob before she added, "It was all so real and familiar."

We remained in our embrace. _How could one mortal go through so much? From the brief summary of her dream, the amount she went through should have killed her. Or left her mentally unstable at the least. Maybe she isn't so weak…_

I gently sat Cassandra back down on her bed and made my way towards the door. As my hand touched the handle, she called out, "Please don't tell anyone about this. It can be our little secret."

"Our little secret," I repeated before my brain told me to leave. I opened the door and my blonde hair shone in the bright moonlight. I was positive Cassandra had figured out who I was, but I didn't care. I had no idea how much she had gone through. I ran into my private quarters, a place I scarcely visited, to think over the new knowledge.

* * *

The next day I sat on my throne as Aro discussed a new law that needed to be put into effect. The doors to the throne room swung open to reveal a flustered Jane. "I'm sorry for interrupting, Masters, but Miss Casey has emerged from her bedroom."

"By all means, send her in!" Aro exclaimed, obviously happy that his human pet had recovered. Moments later, a tired Cassandra was rushed into the throne room. She looked even frailer in the new light than she did last night. It was obvious that she did not realize how poor her health was. Aro ignored her poor condition and exclaimed, "Miss Casey! It is marvelous to have you back!"

"It is great to be back," she said. Cassandra glanced over and caught my eye. The unspoken question lingered in the air. _You have not spoken of our conversation last night, correct? _I gave her a curt nod and her face visibly relaxed. Aro, completely oblivious to the entire exchange, turned to me and said, "Caius, escort Miss Casey to your quarters. I believe you two have some business to attend to."

The rest of the vampires cleared the room as I got up from my throne and began to lead the way to my study. For the first time, Cassandra said nothing. The silence was antagonizing. I had no idea what to say, so I remained silent. In a way, I missed the bickering between us. _No, you do not. You do not miss anything about the mortal. You are counting the days until she is gone. Why don't I believe that anymore? _I opened the door to my study for her. She looked mildly surprised at my manners, but said nothing. We sat down in our usual spots; I was seated at my desk and her in the plush lounge chair. The silence remained, both us were too proud to apologize first. Cassandra was the first to give in. She took a deep breath and said, "I'm sorry about the way I treated you. I was kind of a bitch. Okay, a lot a bitch. I was just angry about staying here so I took it out on you."

_That was her apology? _I swallowed my pride and said, "I apologize too. My behavior towards you was wrong. I have hated mortals for thousands of years, and to me, you were just another mortal. I had no idea what you had gone through."

I would have said 'I'm sorry about what you had gone through', but Cassandra wasn't the type of person you said that too. She was stubborn and refused to reveal any emotions that would make her look weak. It was odd to see her in such an emotional place. It reminded me that she was still human. I'm not sure whether that was a good thing or not.

Cassandra smirked at me and said, "Wow. This is a touching moment in our relationship. We are like besties now. We should have a dance!"

_And she is back to her usual self. _My red eyes widened at the word dance. Worriedly I asked, "What?"

She got up from her seat and demonstrated the 'dance' as she said it out loud. "It could go like this: slide to the right, slide to the left, shimmy up, shimmy down, a little butt action, then FREESTYTLE!"

I watched as the mortal transitioned from shaking her butt, which I tried very hard not to look at, to doing some odd dance move. It looked like she was running in place, but her legs came higher up and her arms moved around in circles. To make my point clear, I glared at her and said, "I am not doing that."

"Don't worry. I was only messing with you," she joked. The air seemed to change in the room. Any hostility that had been between us disappeared into thin air. Though we were nowhere close to being, I hate to even say the word, friends; a new respect had formed between us. I could tell that the girl sensed it too because a small smile seemed to creep up onto her face. She settled down into the chair and began to fiddle with her phone. I returned to my letters, which had lessened since the conversation with Aro. He had begun to take more responsibility over the Volturi.

I scribbled away at most recent letter, but I itched to pull out my journal. But I have sworn to keep this journal a secret. Especially from Cassandra. There would not be an end to here teasing if she found out I kept it. Instead, the leather bound book stayed hidden in the secret compartment of my desk. Cassandra's phone began to sing about this 'Pigfarts' again, breaking the silence. She looked down at the screen and smiled. With a single tap, she had answered the phone. A young voice called out, "Casey? Are you there?"

"Hi, Maggie. It's Casey."

"I can't believe you didn't tell me you are in Italy!" the young girl, Maggie, exclaimed.

"I'm sorry. I thought someone would tell you," Cassandra apologized.

"It's fine. How is the pizza there? Have you seen the Leaning Tower of Pizza? Chad says you can eat it!"

"It's the Leaning Tower of **Pisa, **_petit ange. _And I actually haven't had any pizza yet," she admitted.

"Oh, I have to go to school now. It's 7:30 A.M. here," Maggie said.

"Have fun, my little magpie! I love you!"

"I love you too, Casey!" the young girl said. Cassandra hung open the phone with a wide smile spread across her pale face.

"Who was that?" I inquired.

"My little cousin, Maggie. She is my little magpie. _Ma petit ange. _She is only five and she can fill your heart with happiness. She can see past all the demons and find something good in everyone," she said. Her eyes were lit up when she spoke of Maggie. It was obvious that the girl loved her younger cousin very much. In the back of my mind, I wondered if the young girl could find good in me. I brushed the thought away quickly and said, "She sounds like a very special girl."

"She is amazing," Cassandra said proudly. "Would you like to see I picture?"

"Do I have a choice?"

"No," she said honestly holding up her phone. The screen was lit up with a picture of a young girl. Her hair was an unruly mane of scarlet red and her eyes were a shocking shade of green. Freckles covered most of her nose and a bright smile shone on her face. It was nearly impossible to see any resemblance between the two girls, but it was there. Both had the same eye shape and their smiles were similar. A question came into my mind. "Does she know about your wings?"

"No, not many people do. I am planning on telling her once she turns six."

"Who else knows?"

"Besides you guys, the Cullens, Bella, Charlie, Renee, Jackie, Ally, Connor, and the people of La Push," she listed.

"La Push?" I asked confused. I had not heard that name before in any conversations.

"A small Indian reservation the Logan lives on," she explained.

"Oh," I said unable to come up with any other questions. We settled back into our daily routines; her reading a book off my shelf, and me doing my Volturi king duties.

* * *

A few days have passed since Cassandra came back out into the world of the undead. As she sat on her phone, I could see a plan formulating in her eyes. Abruptly she stood up and said, "I'm going to go get pizza."

"What?" I asked shocked, unable to believe my ears.

"You heard me," she said as she walked out of the room.

"You mean, like, outside?" I asked. _Did I just say 'like'? I am spending too much time with Cassandra._

She gave me a look and said, rather sarcastically, "No. I mean the pizza place we have in the ancient Volturi castle."

"You can't go outside. I forbid you."

"Newsflash, **you **are **my **protector. That means **you **have to follow **me **wherever** I **go," she said smugly.

"What about the sun?" I asked, as I tried to avoid going outside.

"I'll use the same mind tricks that I use for my wings." _She really does have this all planned out. _

"I don't really have a choice, do I?" I asked, giving into the mortal's request.

"Nope," she said as she skipped ahead of me and out through the doors of the castle. The human receptionist, Bianca, gave us an odd look before returning to her work. _Remember to kill her later for questioning my actions. _We made our ways through the crowded streets of Volturi. People pushed by me, not knowing about my true nature. Young children laughed and played while their parents talked amongst themselves. _This is horrible. _

"I do not like this," I said annoyed.

"But I do!" she exclaimed. Her pale skin soaked up the sun's rays. The sun shone off her blonde hair. It looked like a big halo around her head. Her stormy blue eyes looked brighter in the light of the sun. Before she could notice my staring, I returned the scowl to my face and asked, "Can we just find your pizza place and leave?"

"Aw, you're no fun! I wanted to do some shopping!" she complained.

"Is this the pizza place?" I asked pointing at a shop that read "Petsmart".

"That's a pet store."

"So?"

"It sells things for animals."

"Oh."

"Wow, you really are clueless," she said rolling her eyes. I scowled at her back as she walked down the street. We traveled down a few more blocks before we stopped in front of a store that read _Bella Italia. _She pulled me into the restaurant and the small of mortal food filled my nose. It smelled disgusting. I crinkled my nose as Cassandra placed her order. She sat down at a booth and minutes later the food, pizza arrived. She lifted the pizza up to her mouth and took a huge bite. On her left wrist, a symbol in black was inked on. She gave me a quizzical look. I cleared my throat, realizing that her wrist was in line with her breasts. I came to the conclusion that she thought I was looking at her breasts.

"What is on her wrist?" I asked, clarifying that I was not looking at her upper chest.

"It's a tattoo. It's like a permanent drawing on your body," she said, revealed that I was not looking at her breasts.

"What is it?"

"It's an infinity sign. Jackie and Ally also have one. It represents the hardships we have pushed through."

She finished her pizza and left a tip on the table. We walked out of the restaurant and back towards the Volturi castle. We took a quicker route, which I showed her, for the trip back. All of a sudden, she stopped dead in her tracks. I bumped into her, but I quickly stepped back. She turned to me and squealed, "You have Arita's here?"

"I have Arita's what here?" I asked confused.

"Not Arita. A Rita's. It's only the best Italian ice place on earth!" she explained. "We need to go."

"No. We need to get back to the castle," I said. Cassandra ignored me and stalked off towards the store's door. I glared at her and called, "Don't you dare walk in there."

"Watch me."

"You should have gotten something, Caius. This is really good," she said while eating a blue flavor of this 'Italian ice'. Her lips had turned a distracting shade of blue.

"I have no interest in mortal food. My body cannot digest it and I will simply throw it up later," I said bluntly. She gave a disgusted look at the mention of throwing up.

"Can I go to my room? I need to shower. Plus I'm tired."

"Go ahead," I said. She got up and began to leave. Before she was out of sight, I called, "Your lips are blue."

She smiled and said, "I know."

She blew me a dramatic kiss. I looked at her dumbfounded as she left the room. _Did Cassandra just blow me a kiss?_

* * *

**Sorry this is a little choppy. It is four chapters all combined into one! Sorry it took a while to update, I was at camp and on vacation. It would be really nice if you could leave me reviews to wake up to. **

**Also, does anyone have any good story suggestions. I don't like any dark or M rated stories. The fandoms I read from are Harry Potter, Twilight, Mortal Instruments, Infernal Devices, Percy Jackson, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Hunger Games. I like the characters Tom Riddle, Draco Malfoy, Caius Volturi, Jace Herondale, Jonathan Morgenstern, Magnus/Alec, Jem Carstairs, Percy Jackson, Nico Di Angelo, Jack Sparrow, and Katniss/Peeta. I like stories with OCs and I also like canon pairings. I know this is kind of specific but any suggestions would be helpful.**


	10. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight.**

* * *

**Chapter 9**

* * *

It had been a month and eleven days since Cassandra had forced me outside. We had not gone outside since. I had refused her pathetic attempts to drag me back into the mortal world. I had hated the first trip and I was fairly certain that I would hate it again. Friday was the only thing that got me through the month. On Friday, I dropped the girl off with Athenodora and Sulpicia so that I could attend the executions. Today was my turn to kill the criminals. I took all of my anger towards Cassandra, Aro, and anyone else I was upset or annoyed with at the time and mercilessly ripped each of the vampire's heads off.

After I had finished killing off all the criminals, we sat on our thrones and waited for a problem to occur. Usually, we would have discussed a law that needed fixing or the prophecy, but lately Aro and Marcus had been managing those issues much better. I was thinking of bringing up what Cassandra had discussed with me the day before, but the girl busted through the door of the throne room before I could say a word.

"Ah, Miss Casey," Aro greeted her. I almost had a heart attack, if it was possible for immortals to have heart attacks, at the sight behind her. Athenodora and Sulpicia followed behind her with their heads held high. Aro looked flabbergasted at the scene in front of him. "Sulpicia! Athenodora! What are you doing outside your tower?"

"Good to see you too, honey," Sulpicia said sarcastically. "It's been only, what, a decade?"

I had never seen the wives like this. Aro, still completely shocked, backed away from his mate's cold glare. To my surprise, Marcus stood up and walked over to the group of women. "What do you wish?" he asked kindly.

"We are going to have a big Thanksgiving feast. We can have one of the human servants fix Casey a feast and we can all drink blood," my sister said boldly. I was familiar with the idea of Thanksgiving. It was an American mortal holiday that celebrated the Native Americans and the Europeans working together and getting the harvest done. I was in total shock. _Did they really expect us to celebrate this ridiculous holiday? _I looked at Athenodora and asked, "Sister, you cannot be serious?"

"I'm dead serious, Caius. No pun intended," she spat angrily. "And I do have a name. It's Athenodora or Dora, not 'sister'."

The entire room, including Cassandra, stared at the wives in shock. None of us had seen such irrational behavior from them before. I believed it was the girl. She was a bad influence on them. I refused to let this Thanksgiving feast occur. "We are not having a 'Thanksgiving' feast," I stated. "It is utterly mundane."

"I have an idea!" Sulpicia exclaimed. "Let's put it to a vote!"

Before I could say my next sentence, Marcus cut into the conversation and said, "That is an excellent idea. Everyone in favor of the idea, put your hand up."

Most of the guard raised their hands. They had grown attached to Cassandra and some even considered her their friend. The three women in the center of the room and Marcus all raised their hands as well. That left only Aro and I, the two most powerful, not in favor of the idea. Our vote should count for more than the guards. Out of the corner of my red eyes, I watched Aro as he hesitantly raised his hand. I scowled at the fact that I was the only one without my hand raised now. I narrowed my eyes and slumped back into the chair.

"You can do this 'Thanksgiving', but on one condition. You must plan the entire thing," Aro said.

"Deal," Cassandra said happily as she left the throne room. Felix snuck out after her, probably hoping to sneak up on her. As the guard slowly left the room, I turned to Aro and asked, "We are going through with this ridiculous idea of the girls?"

"Yes, we are. It will be a good way to bond with the rest of the Volturi," Aro said formally, but I could see through his lie.

"You're lying. You just feel bad that you haven't spoken to your wife in a decade," I pointed out.

"Whatever the case may be, we are going to have this Thanksgiving whether you like it or not," Aro said as he left the throne room. Marcus stood up and said to me, "You should give Miss Casey a chance. You may come to like her."

With that, Marcus exited out the door that Aro left through. I growled at his back and stormed out of the throne room. I told the new receptionist, Kiara, that I was going hunting then I left. I snuck out of the back door of the castle and fled into the forest. I rushed deeper in until I got outside the city limits. It was a crime to hunt inside Volterra city. The law was created to keep the mortals believing that "St. Marcus" had really saved them from the vampires. _Why is it Marcus they worship? It should be St. Caius day. I should have been the one to drive the vampires out of Volterra. I am a much better fighter than any other vampire in the world. _

I caught the scent of nearby hikers and sped off in their direction. It was a man and a woman, obviously a young couple on a fun date. I hid up in a tree and waited for the woman to turn her back away. When she finally did, I zoomed down and snapped the man's neck, killing him. The woman heard the crack and screamed, but I had vanished into the bushes. She grabbed a necklace that fell on her chest and started muttering prayers in an unfamiliar language. I crept up behind her without making a sound. I grabbed the woman's shoulders and whipped her around to face me. I placed my hands on her neck and prepared myself to snap it.

But then I saw her eyes.

They weren't as hypnotizing as Cassandra's eyes, but they were the same blue-gray shade. Instead of clashing around like a sea at storm, the woman's eyes were calm and boring. They melted together, unlike Cassandra's which tumbled together in a random pattern. Though the similarities between the two mortals stopped there, I still hesitated. All I could see was Cassandra's terrified eyes looking up at me. I was frozen. I had never felt merciful before. But then my anger toward mortals came back. How they exiled Athenodora and I because we were different. I snapped the woman's head off and dug my fangs into her neck. I drained her dry before I moved onto the man. He was rather scrawny. Though my body was lean and muscular, his was just skinny. I growled at his pathetic mortal physique as I sucked up his blood. Feeling satisfied, I ran back to the castle. I went back to my study and grabbed my journal from the secret drawer.

_**Something very weird happened today. While I was out hunting, I came across a pair of hikers. I killed the man with ease. But when it came to the woman, I hesitated. She had Cassandra's eyes. The same blue-gray color, though Cassandra's were much more beautiful. Did I just compliment Cassandra? I guess I did. Whatever, it does not matter. Where did the word "whatever" come from? Damn it, I really am spending too much time with Cassandra. Back to the story, I had hesitated in killing the mortal woman. I **__**never**__** hesitate when killing mortals. They are a weak race that deserves to die. Does Cassandra deserve to die? I suppose not. I guess I would not kill her. Though at one point last year I'm positive that I wouldn't care if she lived or died, I have developed a sort of…bond with the girl. Almost as if we are…friends. No, we are not friends. We just…respect each other. That is all. **__**Though, I will admit that it would be nice to be friends. I have never had a friend before. I have only had acquaintances. Athenodora is the closest thing I have to a friend, but she is my sister so it does not count. **_

_**No, ignore what I wrote above. **__**I do not need a friend. I am the most feared vampire leader in the world. I do not need a friend. They are only a bother; a distraction when you are battling. I do not need a friend, nor will I ever need one.**_

* * *

The dreaded day had arrived.

Cassandra had spent weeks making sure that everything was perfect. And I meant _everything. _She had gone through every leaf on the wreath to make sure it was the correct type. I had done some research on OCD, and apparently that kind of behavior was normal. I shrugged it off and let her plan the stupid holiday.

Now the day was here. I was preparing myself to leave for the "feast" when Alec came through the door. I snarled at the young vampire and asked, "What do you want?"

"Aro requests your presence immediately, master. He said to meet him in his study," Alec said. I nodded once and the immortal boy left. Internally, I was relieved that I would be missing some of the feast. I made my way up a floor to Aro's study. Marcus had already arrived and was huddled around the Prophecy Book. Aro looked up from the book and said, "Caius, I have made the most terrific discovery!"

"Please tell me," I drawled.

"What if Hell is a place!"

"It is. Now if that is all…"

"No, I mean a place in the mortal world!" Aro exclaimed. "Maybe Miss Casey refers to her hometown of Forks as Hell."

"And how would we find this out? You cannot read the girl's thoughts and Marcus cannot read bonds to hometowns," I pointed out.

"You could ask her," Marcus said. "I'm sure she would tell you."

"But she would question why I was asking. I thought we agreed to not tell her about the prophecy."

"That is true," Aro agreed. "Let us take a break from this patronizing discussion and go enjoy the Thanksgiving feast Miss Casey has prepared! I am very excited!"

Excited was not the word that described how I felt as I made my way to the throne room, which had been modified to fit the long dining table Cassandra ordered. Aro opened the door and a chunk of mortal food whacked me in the head. It covered my face completely, some even got into my mouth. It was some sort of paste and needless to say, it did not taste well. I wiped the gunk out of my eyes and stared at the scene in front of me. The throne room and its inhabitants were covered in mortal food. Everyone stood frozen as they stared at the three of us. They seemed to be ignoring the giant mess, hoping that it would disappear. It did not. Aro broke the silence and asked, "Miss Casey, care to explain what is going on?"

Cassandra's eyes widened and said, "You see, it is all just one big misunderstanding."

I raised an eyebrow, though I was positive it couldn't be seen through the mortal food gunk that covered my flawless face. I noticed the Aro also gave her a questioning look and she continued, "This is really the work of the infamous Volturi panda bear, Steve. You see, Steve took some of my potatoes and flung them at Demetri. Thinking it was me who flung the food, Demetri flung some peas at me. I couldn't let him get away with that, so I threw a roll at him. Demetri ducked and the roll hit Jane instead! Well, one thing led to another, and a food fight broke out. So really, this is all Steve's fault and none of us should get punished."

It was obvious that Cassandra was the one to throw the potatoes at Demetri, but I played along with her insanely stupid story. I wiped the food off of my face and asked, "Where is this 'Steve'?"

"Oh, Steve is invisible."

I was about to start yelling at the guard and Cassandra before Marcus spoke up and said, "Just go get cleaned up. And how about no more feasts?"

Everyone nodded their heads sheepishly and exited the room. I saw Cassandra give Marcus a small smile. I glared at her and she quickly dropped the smile and looked away. A small knot formed in my stomach. Was it guilt? _No, I am not feeling guilty for making Casey drop her smile. Did I just call her Casey? Damn it, I did it again. _I looked back to see _Cassandra _glancing back with a small smile on her face. For a split second, I thought she was looking back at me. But then I followed her gaze to Marcus, who had a small amused grin on his face. I scowled at Marcus's back.

Aro came up behind me and said, "Why are you scowling at Marcus?"

I looked back at Aro. In truth, I did not know why I was glaring at Marcus. Aro put his hand on my shoulder. At first, I thought he was showing brotherly affection. But then I realized he was reading my thoughts. I quickly shrugged his hand off, but not quick enough. Aro's look softened and he said, "Caius, I believe you are jealous."

_Jealous? I am not jealous because Casey smiled at Marcus and not me! Damn it, stop calling her Casey! It doesn't matter if she prefers that name over Cassandra. I shall call her what I like! _I scowled at Aro and hissed, "I am not jealous!"

I stormed out of the throne room and into my study. I passed _Cassandra's _room and I heard the shower running. Her voice rang clear through the hall as she sang about "The dog days" and how they are "over". She had a beautiful voice. Though her taste in music was not the same as mine, she still sounded beautiful. I paused more a moment, contemplating on whether I should enter. Then I remembered she was in the shower, I quickly walked back to my study. I pulled out the hidden leather-bound book that I kept tucked away in the secret drawer of my desk.

_**Today was Thanksgiving, the ridiculous mortal holiday Casey made us celebrate! Cassandra! Not Casey! Damn it, what is wrong with me? Anyways, it did not work out. Aro called Marcus and I to his study to discuss the prophecy. He has some insane idea that Hell is actually a place on earth and not the Underworld. He believes it refers to her hometown of Forks since she has talked about how much she hates it numerous times. He also expects me to ask her if she refers to Forks as Hell. Like she would tell me! Aro finally decided to go down to the throne room so we could attend the ridiculous feast. When he opened the door, I was greeted with flying mortal food. Apparently, Casey, I mean Cassandra, had started a food fight that had gotten out of hand. She blamed the "infamous Volturi panda bear, Steve" on the situation. She is absolutely stupid to think that story would work. When she smiled at Marcus today an odd feeling came upon me. Aro said it was jealousy. I do not believe him. Why would I feel jealous about something as petty as that? Especially if Casey only smiled at Marcus. Damn it! Cassandra! Why have I begun to use her stupid nickname? I have been out of sorts ever since I killed that woman. But I was definitely not jealous of Marcus. Right?**_

* * *

**So, Caius seems to have some feelings going on. Though Caius may be a little OOC, I actually kind of like how it turned out. I know this is a little bit shorter than I usually write, but I really hope you guys like it. Please R and R! Have a nice day!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight**

* * *

**Chapter 10**

* * *

I stared at my reflection in the mirror. My cold black eyes glared back at me. _I need to go hunting. _I had avoided the activty ever since the…incident with the mortal woman. I had no longer felt like the merciless Volturi leader I was. I had changed. And I did not like it one bit. I was almost certain that Casey, no Cassandra, was changing me. I hated the effect that she had on me. It was sickening to know that a mortal could have such an impact on my behavior. But she wasn't an ordinary mortal. For one, she wasn't afraid of me like so many were. She also had gone through more than most people do in a lifetime in a small 20 years. _Damn it! Now I am pitying her! I really need to hunt. _

I rushed into the throne room where I found Aro and Marcus sitting on their thrones. "I am going hunting."

"But what about Miss Casey? She will be awakening soon," Aro said.

"Just have the guard watch over her until I come back." I flippantly flicked my wrist and began to leave the throne room. Alas, my brothers were not finished with me yet.

"You should give the girl a chance, Caius. You may grow to like her," Marcus said. It was odd to hear him talk. He had barely said a word since Didyme died. Now, he was actually becoming more involved with our decisions. Again, I blamed Casey.

"I have given Casey a chance but she has continued to be insufferable. I do not and never will care for her," I lied. If I were to be honest with myself, I had grown to care for her. I hated it, but it was the truth. Though I would never let anyone else know that.

"You lie, brother," Aro said.

"Do I?"

"You do care for her."

"I do not care for Casey!"

"That is the second time in this conversation you have called her 'Casey'. What happened to 'mortal' and 'girl'?" Aro asked smartly. I cursed in Greek, I language I rarely used, and glared at Aro.

"Not a word of this conversation will be talked about outside of this throne room. Understand?"

"Agreed," both of them said simultaneously. I stormed out of the room. The mortal at the desk did not question where I was going. I was ashamed at myself. A simple slip of the tongue and I had revealed that I actually cared for Casey. I ran into the forest right outside Volterra. I was not in the mood to run any further. I climbed into a tree and waited for any mortals to wander nearby.

_How dare she change me so much! It has only been a few months yet Casey has completely changed the Volturi. I refuse to let her change us anymore. The next thing I know, the guard will be sporting golden eyes because they "don't want to accidentally hurt Casey's friends". No, I doubt they would actually go that far. I wonder what diet Casey would have if she was a vampire. Would she feed on animal blood or human blood? Or both? Why do all my thoughts drag me back to her? It is infuriating. _I brushed a piece of hair out of my eye. For a moment, I thought about getting a haircut. Immediately, I brushed the silly thought off. I would never cut my hair. It had been like that for three thousand years and I was not about to change it. _What kind of hair does Casey like on men? Why do I even care? _

I sat perched in that tree for over an hour before a small hunting group approached. It was two larger men accompanied by three hunting dogs. I pounced on top of the older of the two men and snapped his head. I quickly snapped the other creature's heads, including the dogs, so I did not have to worry about any witnesses. Even if they were canines. I glanced at the dogs. _Do I dare? _Before I could back out, I sucked one of the beasts dry. The taste was horrible. Possibly one of the worst things I had ever tasted in my entire existence. I tried to get the awful taste out of my mouth my sucking out the human's dead blood, but it did not work. The taste of the dog's blood remained in my mouth.

I trudged back to the castle in a sour mood. _Never again will I feed from an animal. _I glanced up at the sun and saw it was midday. I slammed the hidden door to the castle and stomped into the kitchen where Casey was everyday around this time. She called it "eating lunch". It seemed that mortals now ate three times a day as opposed to two.

"I have come back from huntin-"

I would have finished my sentence, but there was nobody, mortal or immortal, in the kitchen. I figured she must have eaten already so I went to check the lounge that the guard was often found in when they were not serving. That was empty also. When Casey's room and my study were also found bare, I began to worry. I rushed up the tower and knocked loudly on the wives' door. It flung open and I asked Athenodora, "Have you seen Casey?"

"One, I have not seen _Casey_ anywhere," she said putting emphasis on the name Casey. I mentally cursed myself for not being more careful. "And two, why do you care? I heard she was hanging with the guard for the day. Just take a break."

She closed the door as I stormed down the winding stairs and into the back entrance into the throne room. It was empty also. _Did something happen while I was away? Were the Volturi attacked. The entire Volturi gone. That is highly unlikely. Considering all the human servants are still here. _Not paying attention, I almost ran into Aro in the hall. Almost.

"Caius! You are back from your hunting trip!" he exclaimed.

"Obviously," I drawled sarcastically. Aro's nose furrowed. He scowled deeply and asked, "Is that animal blood that I smell on your breath?"

"Dannazione! Questo giorna sta andando terribilmente!" I cursed in Italian. This was another example of how Casey was changing me. I never cursed out loud, unlike Casey who "openly expressed her feelings using colorful language". _She is even rubbing off on my speaking habitats. Great. _Aro dropped the subject of the animal blood quickly. He knew it was better to just let the matter go instead of pestering me further. I took a deep breath and regrouped myself. "Have you seen the guard?"

"The last time I checked they were in the guard lounge with Miss Casey," he replied calmly. We began walking down the hallway. I rolled my eyes. Aro was no more help than Athenodora was, but it was comforting to know that the Volturi hadn't been attacked.

"I already checked there. I am not an idiot!" I exclaimed. We entered a large room with a high ceiling. If I were to look up, hundreds of the original rafters could be seen. The room was dark and tucked back into the corners of the castle. I turned back to Aro and said, "I'm telling you, I cannot find the mortal or the guard anywhere!"

I could have imagined it, but I heard a soft scoff when I said the word mortal. It was positive that it had not come from Aro since it sounded very feminine. He raised an eyebrow when I said mortal, obviously referring back to the conversation we had earlier that day. He did not bring up that subject, but instead said, "I'm sure they are fine. Just take the day off and relax."

He glided out of the room, back to whatever world his mind lived in. I stayed back and looked around the room for the source of the sound. I glanced up at the raters and my eyes fell upon a certain winged mortal hiding up in the rafters. I was glad that I had said mortal instead of Casey. That would not have been good if she had overheard. Casey, who had realized that I had spotted her, started making frantic hand motions. _So she wants to play charades. Okay then. _

I started to motion for her to get down. The beam she was resting on was fragile and I was not in the mood to play hero and catch the falling girl. Then again, she could probably just fly down if something happened. I heard footsteps coming down one of the many corridors that led into this room. Casey obviously heard them too because she started to frantically make motions with her body. I was still at a lost for what she was trying to say. As I tried to comprehend what she wanted, Alec came bustling into the room. When he saw me, the young immortal boy immediately straightened up and asked, "Master Caius, have you seen Miss Casey recently?"

"Yes. She is right up there," I said pointing up to her hiding spot. She scowled at me and flew down from her perch on the rafters. She tucked her black wings away and scowled at me. Judging by her look, it seemed I was going to regret that later on.

**xxxxxxx**

Needless to say, when Casey asked, no ordered, everyone to come into the throne room, I was worried. On a normal day, I would have been furious that a mortal commanded me to do something, but I was in no mood to argue. I had drunk two of the human servants to try and get the smell of animal blood off of my breath. Aro was angry with my actions, but eventually told me that the smell was gone. I sat down on my throne and scowled at the guard. For some odd reason, they were trying rather hard to keep an impassive face. Once in a while, a small smirk or a snicker could have been seen or heard from the sides of the room. Loud obnoxious music filled my ears. I would have tracked down the source of this horrible sound, but three people who had just emerged from the front doors stopped me.

Casey strutted in, flanked by Demetri and Felix. They wore almost identical black leotards; Casey's being slightly different from the others. They all wore identical heels and had the same dark makeup and puffed up hair. Casey had on an odd metal hand contraption that moved like it belonged there. I struggled to maintain my scowl as Demetri and Felix struggled to walk in the high heels. They all opened their mouths and began to sing.

_[All]_

_All the single ladies (All the single ladies)  
All the single ladies (All the single ladies)  
All the single ladies (All the single ladies)  
All the single ladies  
Now put your hands up_

_[Casey]  
Up in the club, we just broke up  
I'm doing my own little thing  
You decided to dip but now you wanna trip  
Cause another brother noticed me  
I'm up on him, he up on me  
don't pay him any attention  
Cause I cried my tears, for three good years  
Ya can't be mad at me_

_[All]  
Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it  
If you liked it then you should've put a ring on it  
Don't be mad once you see that he want it  
If you liked it then you should've put a ring on it_

_[Felix and Demetri]  
Wuh uh oh uh uh oh oh uh oh uh uh oh  
Wuh uh oh uh uh oh oh uh oh uh uh oh_

_[All]  
Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it  
If you liked it then you should've put a ring on it  
Don't be mad once you see that he want it  
If you liked it then you should've put a ring on it_

The trio had started to dance in the most erotic fashion that I had seen in decades. On one move, their legs were spread out wide as they moved their hips in circles. It was hard to remember that it was Felix and Demetri doing this dance and not two girls. Whoever did their makeup and hair, which had been made much longer due to obviously fake extensions, did an excellent job.

_[Casey]  
I got gloss on my lips, a man on my hips  
Hold me tighter than my Dereon jeans  
Acting up, drink in my cup  
I could care less what you think  
I need no permission, did I mention  
Don't pay him any attention  
Cause you had your turn  
And now you gonna learn  
What it really feels like to miss me_

_[All]  
Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it  
If you liked it then you should've put a ring on it  
Don't be mad once you see that he want it  
If you liked it then you should've put a ring on it_

_[Felix and Demetri]_

_Wuh uh oh uh uh oh oh uh oh uh uh oh  
Wuh uh oh uh uh oh oh uh oh uh uh oh_

_[Casey]  
Don't treat me to these things of the world  
I'm not that kind of girl  
Your love is what I prefer, what I deserve  
Is a man that makes me then takes me  
And delivers me to a destiny, to infinity and beyond  
Pull me into your arms  
Say I'm the one you want  
If you don't, you'll be alone  
And like a ghost I'll be gone_

There was a hidden sadness in her eyes. It looked as if she was remembering something happy, but knew it could never happen again. Just when I thought that this torture was through with, Casey opened up her mouth and began to sing about "single ladies" with Felix and Demetri once more.

_[All]_

_All the single ladies (All the single ladies)  
All the single ladies (All the single ladies)  
All the single ladies (All the single ladies)  
All the single ladies  
Now put your hands up_

_[Felix and Demetri]  
Wuh uh oh uh uh oh oh uh oh uh uh oh  
Wuh uh oh uh uh oh oh uh oh uh uh oh_

_[All]  
Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it  
If you liked it then you should've put a ring on it  
Don't be mad once you see that he want it  
If you liked it then you should've put a ring on it  
Cause if you liked it then you should have put a ring on it  
If you liked it then you should've put a ring on it  
Don't be mad once you see that he want it  
If you liked it then you should've put a ring on it_

_Wuh uh oh_

They struck an ending pose and waited for the "audience's" reaction. After a brief moment of silence, the entire throne room broke out into thunderous laughter. Surprisingly, I even began to laugh. I couldn't help myself. There was a female's laugh in the room that made me just want to laugh. _Wait. It couldn't be. _I traced the source of the wonderful laugh to a certain mortal girl. Her eyes caught mine and I stared back at her horrified. I quickly broke eye contact and scowled at the ground. _So you like how she smells. Is that really an issue? _I knew the answer to that question.

_Yes. Yes it is._

* * *

"Please!"

"No."

"Please!"

"No."

"Please!"

"No!" I shouted back. For the past ten minutes, Casey had tired feverishly to allow me to take her outside. My answer remained as a stern no, not wanting to venture into the mortal village again.

"But I need new shoes! My only pair of flip-flops broke," Casey whined. I was truly shocked. Usually, she never whined or complained too much. She must really want to go outside. Now irritated, I growled, "I don't care. I am not going back outside."

"Why? Are you afraid?" she taunted.

"I am not afraid!" I yelled defensively.

"Sure," she sang in a disbelieving voice. Casey slumped back down onto her seat and began to mess around with her thumbs. _Does she really believe that I am afraid? I will show her! I am not afraid of the stupid mortal village!_

"Get your coat, it looks like it's going to rain," I said. I caught a small smirk creep on to her pale face. That was when I knew I had fallen for her childish trick. Casey returned moments later with a red rain coat tucked under her arm. A small black umbrella dangles from her wrist. She hands the device to me and says, "So your hair doesn't get messed up."

I scowled at her, but still accepted the umbrella. I began to open it up, when she flipped out. "What are you doing?"

"Opening the umbrella…"

"It's bad luck to open an umbrella indoors!"

I stared at Casey in complete disbelief. _Does she really believe those silly mortal superstitions? _The answer was yes. When I tried again to open up the black umbrella, she once again flipped out and snagged the umbrella out of my hands, refusing to give it back until we were outside. When we finally reached the entrance to the clock tower, she handed the stupid object back to me and sprinted into the pouring rain towards the shoe store. It was just my luck that the shoe store she wanted to go to was ten blocks away. Apparently only this particular store would work and not the other five we passed on the way to get here.

We walked into the shoe store completely soaked. Of course, the cold from the rain did not bother me, but I could see Casey's teeth chattering. I was going to offer her my coat, but she walked towards a pair of shoes before I could say anything. I grumpily sat down on a nearby stool and glared at the many female mortals trying on ridiculously high heels. One pair of girls that were trying on this torture devices for feet strutted over to me and sat down too close.

I do not like people touching me. I never have and I never will. I especially don't like hands. Though I am immune to all human diseases, hands are still filthy and should be washed at least five times a day. Unless you are a vampire. Then once or twice a day is perfectly reasonable. I had kept this small fact hidden from Casey, in fear that she might use it against me. The two girls, a brunette and a blonde, moved in even closer to me as they "tried on shoes". I saw Casey shoot them a disgusted look. It did not go unnoticed by the girls because moments later, the brunette was motioning to the blonde to join her up by Casey. I was thankful that Casey was able to get then away from me, though I was not sure that was her intention. I tuned myself in to the conversation that was going on between the girls.

"Do you have a problem with us?" the brunette asked snottily.

"Yeah, do you have a problem with us?" the blonde chimes in. I raised an eyebrow in disbelief. _A snotty brunette and a dumb blonde. This should be interesting._

"Yes, I do," Casey said boldly. "I think your outfits are highly inappropriate for a public store and I think you sluts."

I stared at the girl's outfits for the first time. The brunette was wearing a tight, short dress with a plunging V-neck neckline. It was almost uncomfortable to look at. The blonde wore a short top that exposed her belly-button which appeared to have a ring through it. The girl's shorts were shorter than anything I had ever seen Casey wear. That both had boatloads of makeup on and a facial expression that looked like dung was being held under their noses. They looked like they were trying too hard to be pretty.

After Casey finished her first impression on the mortal girl's, their mouths fell open. I saw the store owner give them a quizzical look. He could sense the tension between the group of mortals. I was going to pull Casey out of the store but she plastered on a fake smile and held out her hand. "Hi, my name is Casey. It is nice to meet you." _So she saw the look the store owner gave them too. She is very observant._

"Hi! My name is Lucie! And this is Lila!" the blonde, Lucie, says motioning towards her brown friend. "For a minute I thought you didn't like us!"

"She doesn't like us, idiot! She is faking it!" Lila says. "And quite frankly, I don't like her either."

"At least I'm not the Wicked Bitch of the West," Casey said with a smirk.

"Ooh! What am I?" Lucie asked excitedly. I could hardly believe this mortal. I found it hard to believe that she was actually that dumb.

"Her flying monkey," Casey said rolling her eyes. Lucie began jumping up and down and clapping. "Yay! I love monkeys!"

Lila scowled at Casey and said, "Listen up. Nobody talks to me that way. You better-"

Before this could go any more downhill, I interrupted her with a loud cough. I slid an arm over Casey's warm shoulder and said, "I really don't think we should be doing this so publically. Now if you excuse us ladies, Casey and I have places to be."

We strolled out into the streets of Volterra. It had stopped raining outside, but it felt like a torrential downpour of rocks was coming down in my head. _How could I be so stupid to slip up and say Casey's name? I don't think she noticed. _We got a good distance from the store before Casey burst out in laughter. I quickly joined in, unable to help myself. _How can her laughter be so contagious? _I saw her glanced down at her hands and noticed that there were no bags and her hands.

"Wicked Bitch of the West. That is a good one," I chuckled.

"You've seen the Wizard of Oz? It's my favorite movie of all time!" she exclaimed. I was slightly embarrassed that I had watched the mortal movie so I decided to sound nonchalant; as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Of course I've seen the Wizard of Oz. Aro made us all watch it a few decades ago. Why do you sound surprised?"

"This is the same guy who didn't know what a pizza store was…"

"I was only testing you. To see if you knew your Italian," I lied.

"I think we already established that I am fluent in Italian," she said smugly. I opened my mouth to defend myself, but quickly shut it when I realized that Casey was right. I scowled at her and began to go back to the castle. We reached the clock tower in a matter of minutes. I helped Casey into the small hole which leads directly to the castle, instead of taking the long way that guests usually took. When she jumped down, I heard a loud groan. I hopped down gracefully and saw Casey rubbing her butt. I was tempted to tease her, but she glared at me so I said nothing.

By the time we reached Casey's room, she was exhausted. I could see her fighting with her eyelids trying to keep them opened. Before she made her way to bed, she turned back and said, "That was the first time you called me that."

_Oh no. She did notice. Just pretend like you don't know what she is talking about. _"Called you what?"

She grins and answers, "Casey." I started to panic. _How would she react? _"I kind of like it. Much better than 'idiot mortal'." She gave me a huge smile and closed the door to her room. Though I tried hard to resist it, I couldn't.

I smiled back.

* * *

**Sorry I haven't update in forever! It was the last week of summer and I went on a kind of vacation. Then school started. Taking geometry sucks. I prefer algebra. But updates will become less frequent because of school and swimming. **

**Please review! It really makes me smile. Let's try to get up to 10 reviews!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of the songs that are mentioned in the story.**

* * *

**Chapter 11**

* * *

_**Casey is changing us. Even I have begun to change. She is bringing out sides of people that have been buried inside of them for years. Take Marcus for example. Casey is able to make him talk. He has even begun to smile again! Of course, she is an exact replica of Didyme, but in mortal form. If she were to dye her hair black, the resemblance would be scary. But that is not the point. Casey can be the downfall of the Volturi or she can show us a new light.**_

I dipped my quill in the small bottle of ink beside me. Before I could continue, I heard the soft heartbeat of Cassandra. I shut the book quickly and rushed to go find her. I was aware that mortals would sometimes "sleep-walk" and I wanted to verify that Casey was not doing that. I follow her scent to the music room. The mirrored walls reflected her pale face as it shone in the moonlight. Casey sat down on the piano bench and pulled out a journal. She set it in front of her and began to play.

_Step one – you say, "We need to talk."  
He walks, you say, "Sit down. It's just a talk."  
He smiles politely back at you  
You stare politely right on through  
Some sort of window to your right  
As he goes left and you stay right  
Between the lines of fear and blame  
And you begin to wonder why you came_

_Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend_  
_Somewhere along in the bitterness_  
_And I would have stayed up with you all night_  
_Had I known how to save a life_

_Let him know that you know best_  
_'Cause after all you do know best_  
_Try to slip past his defense_  
_Without granting innocence_  
_Lay down a list of what is wrong_  
_The things you've told him all along_  
_Pray to God, he hears you_  
_And I pray to God, he hears you_

I watched as her fingers danced across the keys. Her voice rang loud and clear as she played the song. It was not a song that I had heard her play before. As I saw the raw emotion she put into it, I realized that it was an original song.

_And where did I go wrong? I lost a friend_  
_Somewhere along in the bitterness_  
_And I would have stayed up with you all night_  
_Had I known how to save a life_

_As he begins to raise his voice_  
_You lower yours and grant him one last choice_  
_Drive until you lose the road_  
_Or break with the ones you've followed_  
_He will do one of two things_  
_He will admit to everything_  
_Or he'll say he's just not the same_  
_And you'll begin to wonder why you came_

_Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend_  
_Somewhere along in the bitterness_  
_And I would have stayed up with you all night_  
_Had I known how to save a life_

_Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend_  
_Somewhere along in the bitterness_  
_And I would have stayed up with you all night_  
_Had I known how to save a life_

_How to save a life_

_How to save a life_

_Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend_  
_Somewhere along in the bitterness_  
_And I would have stayed up with you all night_  
_Had I known how to save a life_

_Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend_  
_Somewhere along in the bitterness_  
_And I would have stayed up with you all night_  
_Had I known how to save a life_  
_How to save a life_

_How to save a life_

When Casey finished, she was slightly out of breath. Not knowing what else to do, I slowly started to clap. She whirled her body around to find me leaned up against a wall. Her eyes widened and she snatched up her book. "How long have you been there? Did you just hear that?"

"I've been here for quite a while, actually," I admitted. "I'm surprised you didn't notice me, considering the walls are covered in mirrors. To answer your next question, yes. I did hear all of that and I'm rather impressed. Did you write it?"

"That is none of your business," she snapped.

"Why?"

"Because no one is allowed to hear my songs! My friends don't even know I write them!"

"So, it was your song?" I clarified. I saw Casey's patience get thinner and thinner. If she was not in a good mood at 8:00 when I woke her up each morning, she was definitely not a happy person at 3:00 AM.

"Shut up!" she screamed. Her body collapsed into a heap on the floor. She covered her face with her hands and began to cry softly. I stood there for a moment, unsure of what to do; I had never been particularly good with handling women. At times they seemed to be of a completely different species. After a brief moment of thought, I reached down and pulled her warm hands away from her face. I stared into her blue-grey eyes and wiped away a stray tear. I said to her gently, "This probably won't make you feel better, but I thought that song was amazing."

"Actually," Casey said as small smile crept onto her face, "it does make me feel better. Thanks for being a good friend."

_Friend? Did I hear her correctly? Does she actually consider us to be friends? Not that I have a problem with it, but I thought she hated me! _I managed to ask, "Friends?" without stuttering.

"I believe we are friends now," she stated, but then quickly added. "If that is alright with you."

"Of course it's alright with me," I said not letting any of my excitement slip into my voice. _A friend. I had a friend._

"Great! Then I have a movie I want you to watch!" she exclaimed. Casey picked up her song book and began to leave the room. Before she could go back to bed, I called out, "Casey!"

She turned and looked at me. I smirked and asked, "Since we are friends now, does that mean I have to do that stupid dance?"

She laughed. I hated how much I loved her laugh. It was very contagious. It took every ounce of strength not to laugh with her. Casey smiled at me and said, "Of course."

**xxxxxxx **

Five hours later, I made my way back to her room. She was still asleep when I walked in. Casey had changed out of the blue dress that she was wearing beforehand. She looked so…peaceful. Her face was softer than I normally saw. Though her face was still sharp and angular, her normal hard glare was gone. She had a faint smile on her face, like she was remembering a happy memory. Though I hated to wake her, I whispered, "Casey."

She didn't stir.

"Casey."

Still nothing.

"Casey!"

Nothing. _How can she sleep though my yelling? _Frustrated, I ripped off her sheets. She awoke immediately. Casey's glared at me and returned to her face. "What the hell was that for?"

"You weren't waking up," I stated.

"So you ripped the covers off of me?"

"Yes." Casey rolled her eyes at me. She grabbed the blue dress that was lying in a heap on the floor and went into the bathroom to change. She came out twenty minutes later with the dress on and other bathroom things taken care of. Before we left her room, she rummaged through her bag and pulled out a DVD. Yes, I did know what a DVD was.

"What is that?" I asked referring to the movie title, the Hunger Games.

"The movie I want you to watch. Don't worry, half the people die or almost don't so you won't be bored to death," she explained.

"I am dead." A smirk crept onto my face. She gave me a withering look and said, "Because I haven't heard that joke before." We walked into to the Guard Lounge, which happened to empty. I watched as she opened the case and put the disk into DVD player. She motioned for me to sit down next to her on the plush couch. She hit play and we began to watch the movie.

As the movie progressed I watched Casey's face. She was a mix of utter sadness and complete joy. Of course, the emotions were different during different scenes. At the end of the movie she turned to me and said, "Don't deny it. You wanted to cry."

"Of course not. Men don't cry," I said proudly. If I were being honest with myself, some scenes made me almost cry. If I could. "Plus, vampires can't cry."

"So if you were mortal, and I kicked you really hard in the balls – and I mean immensely hard – you wouldn't cry because you're a man?" she asked trying to prove a point.

"I would not cry. I would simply scream in agony," I said honestly.

"Because the two are **so **different."

"You are quite stubborn," I observed.

"You are just now figuring this out?" she asked with a jovial smile. Though I chose to ignore it, I got a good feeling when she smiled at me. But it was not a crush. I was simply enjoying my friend's company. All friends felt like this. Right? Before I could ponder about those kinds of thoughts any longer, Jane came bursting into the room. She looked frantic when she said, "Master Caius! Master Aro needs you immediately! He needs to discuss the prophecy!"

"I still want to know what that is!" Casey called out.

"Casey, stay here. I will come back as soon as I'm done," I said. I followed Jane out of the Guard Lounge and down a series of corridors. I looked around the area and asked, "Where are you taking me? This is not Aro's study."

"I know. I'm a really good actress. Aro actually didn't need you. I did," Jane admitted. _What? This cannot be good. _"I know you have feelings for Casey."

"What are you talking about?"

"You fancy her."

"What?" I exclaimed, completely caught off guard. "I know that love is in the mind of every 13 year old likes to play matchmaker, but there is nothing going on with Casey and I. In fact, we only just admitted to be friends." I had no clue why I was sharing all of this with the young guard member, but I had to prove my point. Casey was a mortal. She was below me in numerous ways. But in truth, she was above me in many ways as well. She was much kinder than I and, as the prophecy said, brought out the best in everyone. I sighed and turned back to Jane. "If you bring this up again, I will personally burn you and your brother in front of your very eyes."

She gives a small scared squeak and rushes away. It was comforting to know that I could still be the merciless Volturi king. Jane had spoken out of line so she shall be punished. In what way, I had no decided yet. I composed my raging thoughts before I strolled back up the lounge where Casey sat with a phone in her hands. She looked up at me and said, "I need two plane tickets to Newpoint, Kansas. We have a six-year-old birthday party to crash."

* * *

It was entertaining to watch Casey as she tried to remain calm on the plane. Apparently when Jane called me out of the room to talk about her ridiculous fantasies, Casey got a call from Maggie. According to Casey, she had promised Maggie that she would attend her sixth birthday - the same birthday that she planned to tell Maggie about her wings – but told the girl she couldn't attend because of the cost of plane tickets. After hearing the disappointment in the almost six-year-old's voice, Casey begged me to fly to Kansas with her to attend the mortal party.

And that was how we were sitting a plane for 7 hours and 19 minutes while Casey drank a "Coke", five "Mountain Dews", and three cups of what she called a "Pumpkin Spice Latte" in her frivolous attempts to stay awake and keep calm. She apparently had a fear of planes. I took a small sip of my glass of blood while she finished off her third cup of this "latte". Someone had obviously spiked her drinks because she was practically bursting out of her seat. Casey looked at me with wide eyes and groaned. "Do you know how much longer?"

Ignoring her poor English, I answered, "About 20 more minutes."

She, once again, groaned loudly and purposefully whacked her head onto her seat. "Ugh! That is too long!"

"You are not a good traveling companion. I can see why the Cullen brat made you whack your head," I stated. She rolled her vibrant eyes at me. "Thanks."

"This is your captain speaking," one of the lower guard members said. He was a pilot during World War II and the only member that knew how to fly a plane. "We will be touching down in Newpoint, Kansas in a few minutes. Please remain in your seats until then. Have a nice day."

**xxxxxxx**

I looked out the window of the small car we rented at the airport. Casey was driving us through a maze of small streets. She kept on having to make detours because emergency vehicles kept blocking our path. I asked, "Are you sure this is the right way?"

"Yes, I'm sure," she said. Casey gave me a withering look before she returned her eyes back to the road. She made another stop due to a police car that went zooming by. I wondered aloud, "Then why are there so many emergency vehicles?"

"I don't know," she said slightly annoyed. "Let's just get out and walk. The traffic is really backed up."

She parked the car, illegally I might add, and began to walk in the supposed direction of Maggie's school. Casey had the brilliant idea to surprise her young cousin at school. When her speed was faster than the average mortal, I teased her. "Let us add impatient to the list of your charming qualities."

She ignored me and kept walking towards the school. We walked up to a building surrounded by all of the emergency vehicles. _Well, now we know where all the cars were going. _Casey froze up immediately and I almost ran into her. I read the side of the building. Newpoint Elementary School. _Oh no. _Casey bolted up to the yellow tape and ran up to the nearest officer. She grabbed his shirt and demanded, "What is going on?"

"We believe there has been a shooting," the officer answered, unfazed by Casey's touch. I watched as the words processed through her brain. It took her a moment before she freaked. "LET ME IN! MY COUSIN IS IN THERE!"

The man sighed and said, "I'm sorry, miss. But no one is allowed in the building."

Casey stared into the man's eyes. "You will let me and Caius in." I watched, and waited for how the man would react. He stared at her and answered, "Of course, miss. Of course."

I was shocked. I had not even realized that Casey had put the man under her control. It had only taken a few seconds, yet the mortal would jump off a bridge if she asked him to. It was impressive. Casey bolted past the safety line and into the building. She muttered a classroom number under her breath as they turned down multiple hallways. It was obviously the wing for younger students. The walls were filled with the worst "art" I had ever seen. The doodles that Casey made were a close second though. She stopped in front of a classroom and opened the door.

The sight inside would have been horrible if I were a mortal. The bodies of 15 dead children lied still on the floor. Each had a single bullet wound in the chest with delicious red blood spilling out of their bodies. Even the teacher lied dead in her stained red chair. Not one body was mutilated or was drained completely dry, though most had less blood than a normal human child had. This was obviously the work of a vampire who knew how to cover his tracks.

The other giveaway that it was a vampire who did this job, was the pale man who stood in the center of the silent classroom. He turned around, blood slightly smeared across he is. "So the rumors are true. The Volturi are housing a mortal pet. You must be the brat from the prophecy. You're very important, you know."

Casey gave him a livid sneer. "What do you want?"

"You. My mistress said you would come for her," he said motioning towards the numerous bodies of dead children, "and you did."

"What did you do to Maggie?" she asks in a dangerous whisper. He gave her a sadistic smile. "Just took a small drink from her. She will be fine," he snarled. "For now."

What happened next caught me by surprise. Casey pounced on top of the vampire and pinned him to the ground. Her hands were aflame as she explains. "This is how it's going to work. You answer my questions. If you don't answer, you get burned. Got it?" The startled vampire dared to nod his head, but did not make another movement, in fear of being burned. "Great, let's begin. What is your name? And don't try any lies. I have an uncanny ability to tell when people are lying."

"My name i-is Paul," the vampire stuttered. It sickened me to see a vampire being interrogated by a mortal. But it was Casey…

"So, Paul," she asked using his name. "Who are you working for? Is it Victoria?"

Victoria. The name sounded familiar. Wasn't she the crazed vampire who was after Casey's blood? Yes, that was it. She was the vampire that caused Casey to come here in the first place. _Damn her._ Paul looked up at Casey proudly and said, "No, I have never heard that name before. My mistress is much more powerful than what I believe is an idiot vampire." After a moment of thought, he added, "Oh, and you might want to check on your cousin. She has lost quite a bit of blood."

Casey jumped off of him and started searching through the bodies of children. I watched as her expression turned sick as she looked at the bodies of dead children. I felt an ounce of guilt remembering all the children I had killed. Their blood was sweet and I would treat myself to a young child every once in a while. Did I regret it? No. But I still decided to keep the information from Casey.

I watched Paul out of the corner of my red eyes. He didn't try to move. He wasn't that stupid. "Kill Paul. Then shoot him so it looks like he committed suicide. But leave the body. I want everyone to know who did this."

I followed Casey's orders, something I hoped to never do again, and snapped the vampire's head. He didn't put up a fight. He crumpled to the ground and I shot the body. Outside, I heard the shouts of worried people as they reacted to the sound of the gun. I tossed Paul's body aside and turned to Casey. She was leaning over Maggie, who I recognized from the picture she showed me. I watched silently as the two struggled to have a conversation before the younger girl died.

"Casey? Is that you? Do you have wings? What happened?" the dying girl croaked. It was then that I realized Casey's glamor was down. I could see her big black wings in all of their glory. Casey tried to hold back tears as she said, "Yes, it's me. I'm here. And yes, these are my wings. Long story short, a vampire tried to kill you because of me."

Because of me. When she said those three words I knew it was going to be a long road to recovery for Casey. Maggie looked up at her confused. "Vampire? Is that man standing behind you a vampire?"

The scent of blood was starting to overwhelm me. But after three thousand years, you learned some self-control. Casey glanced back; to make sure she was talking about me. "Yes, Caius is a vampire. I have actually been living with vampires for the past two months."

"That is cool," Maggie said quietly. I was surprised at how well the girl was taking the new information. Then again, she was dying. "Casey?"

"Yes?"

"What is 'angel' in French?"

"_Ange_. Why?"

"I have to go now," Maggie whispered. "I love you. You are my _ange._"

"No!" Casey screeched desperately. "Don't go, Maggie! Hold on!" But it was too late. Maggie had already closed her green eyes. Casey sobbed loudly as she curled up into a small ball. Unaware of what to say, I listened and heard the sound of the young girl's very faint heartbeat.

"If you want to say anything else to Maggie, do it now. She still has a faint heartbeat and can hear you," I said trying to hide the sadness I felt for the scene I just witnessed. Casey leaned down close to Maggie's ear and whispered, "I love you. You are my _petit ange._"

A very small smile appeared on the young mortal's face. I heard her heartbeat stop as she fell still. Casey ran into my arms and sobbed, ruining my favorite coat. On normal days, I would have yelled at her for getting the impeccable jacket wet, but I didn't.

Because Casey had cracked.

* * *

**Did you like it? I kind of liked how this went. Did you? Leave any feedback in the form of a REVIEW! I hope you liked how the scene at the school went. I kind of amped it up a bit compared to the original story. Also, you may be seeing a bit more Casey/Caius moments in this one compared to the original. Just FYI. Oh, and a bunch of links are in my bio if you want to see pictures.**

**QOTU (Question of the update): Who is your favorite member of the Cullens and why? Mine is Jasper b/c he is hot :)**


	13. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: It is not that hard to understand. I do not own anything besides my OCs and the plot.**

* * *

**Chapter Twelve**

* * *

I was worried about Casey. She didn't say a word on the plane ride back from Volterra. Instead, she stared absentmindedly out of the window. Her stormy eyes were glazed over and her expression was impassive. When we got off the plane, she vaguely wandered into the castle and into her bedroom. Casey Swan was in a state of shock. She remained secluded behind the walls of her bedroom - oblivious to the rest of the world for three days. Yes, I had begun to worry about her.

I was walking by Casey's bedroom – something I found myself doing often – in hopes that she would emerge and things would be as they once were. I heard the door open and I whipped my head around. Instead of finding Casey's face smiling at me, Marcus met my eager gaze. I stopped the smile that threatened to break out across my face. He looked at me and said, "She wants to talk to you."

I couldn't help but feel satisfied that Casey wished to speak to me. I stepped into her room to find her sitting on the edge of her bed. I sat down next to her and she leaned her warm body into mine. "I'm afraid," she whispered softly – as if she were sharing a huge secret.

"Of what?" I inquired.

"Of forgetting her," she answered solemnly. "Of forgetting everything she was."

"I don't think you will be forgetting her anytime soon." I tried to comfort the upset girl, but it didn't go well. "I don't _ever _want to forget!" Casey screamed as salty mortal formed in her eyes. I wanted nothing more than to wipe the tears away, but I restrained myself.

"No. You don't ever want to let go of the grief. The blame you are feeling about her death. There is nothing you could have done, Casey. Once you let go of your self-blame, you will be free." I had no idea where that speech had come from, but I was proud of myself. I wasn't usually good at comforting, but I thought I was doing a good job.

"But it was my fault, Caius!" she exclaims. "If we had gotten there sooner! Taken her to a hospital! Done something! Anything!"

"Don't blame yourself," I repeat pulling Casey into my arms. We held our embrace for a long time. I didn't want to ever let her go. I wanted her to remain in my arms. I wanted to protect her from all the demons in the world. I wanted her.

_Wait._

_What?_

I tensed ever so slightly. _I want Casey. I want Casey? I want Casey. _I felt the urge to kiss the top of her head, but I didn't. I may want her, but I was certain she didn't feel that way about me. She was independent and stubborn. Casey looked up at me determinedly. "I want to see the prophecy."

I sighed and pulled away. "I thought you would say that."

**xxxxxxx**

"Are you sure about this, Miss Casey?" Aro asked. The prophecy book was tucked under his arm – out of Casey's reach. "We are not positive it is about you."

"My cousin died because the vampire believed I was the one. I need to see it now," Casey said firmly. I knew no matter how much Aro tried, he would not be able to hold it off any longer.

"Very well," Aro sighed. He reluctantly handed her the old book. The book was already opened to the prophecy about the Angel. Casey took the book and sat down on one of the chairs. I watched as her eyes read the prophecy. I read along with her.

_**On the twelfth moon of October, the Angel will come. She will fill everyone's hearts with love, reminding them of what they once were. But the Angel was not sent from Heaven, but instead raised in Hell. She has the destruction of the world at her fingertips. When the clock strikes twelve on Midsummer's Night, she will have to make a choice that could either save of destroy life as we know it.**_

Everyone anxiously awaited her reactions. She looked up from the book and asked, "Why doesn't it rhyme?"

That caught me completely off-guard. "What?"

"Never mind," she mumbled. Her cheeks flushed slightly. Casey studied the picture of the Angel carefully – her eyes soaked in every detail. Marcus was the first to speak up. "Like we said before, we are not positive it is you."

Casey shakes her head. "No, it is me. The picture looks exactly like me. I arrived here on October 12th. I have made Marcus and Caius smile and I have befriended Sully and Dora – reminding everybody of what they once were. Finally, I have the destruction of the world at my fingertips. If I wanted, I could make everyone worship and obey me."

I didn't want to believe it was true. I didn't want Casey to be burdened by such a task. I desperately searched for a flaw in her perfect explanation. I found one. "But you weren't raised in Hell."

She turned to face me. "Yes, I was. The people who gave me wings and powers worked at a place called the Human Enhancement and Learning Laboratory – or H.E.L.L. for short. I was raised in Hell."

Nobody knew what to say. I was in a state of shock. Two months ago, I would have laughed at the thought of Casey fulfilling the prophecy – or even being the Angel for that matter. But now I knew she would be able to do it. I knew Casey. She wouldn't back down from a challenge. And the prophecy was the biggest challenge she was ever going to face. Aro spoke up first. "So the Angel is you. What shall we do about Midsummer's Night?"

Casey glanced over at Marcus. She gave him a knowingly look and said, "Nothing. We will pretend like nothing is wrong. There is a plan for everyone, and you have to be accepting of anything that happens and not blame yourself."

"Are you sure, my dear?" Aro asked. I felt slightly jealous that Marcus had inspired Casey, but I brushed it off. Casey was mine – yet nobody but me knew it yet. True, I was being slightly possessive, but I didn't care. I was so caught up in my thoughts that I did not hear her answer. I stayed back in Aro's study as I watched her go. It was a new feeling for me. I had never had interest in women before. They were simply another species in the world – nothing that men should obsess over.

"Brother," Marcus said softly. "You have developed feelings for the girl."

"Yes," I said coldly.

"You wish to protect her – to keep her safe for ever. You want to embrace her and never let her go. You wish to hide her away from the world's demons," he says. I glare at Marcus. _How could he know exactly what I was thinking? _I gave him an acute scowl. Marcus sighed. "Don't deny your feelings, Caius. This is what I felt when I first met Didyme."

"We are not mates," I said firmly. "I simply wish to protect for the horrible world mortals live in."

"You can't hide her away," Aro said. "She wishes to dance in the sun and soak up the world. She is mortal after all. If you steal her freedom, you steal her joy."

I thought about what Aro said. He had a point. I couldn't keep her for myself. It would be selfish of me to steal her away from her family and friends – only so I could have her. She would not be happy. And if Casey is not happy, neither am I. But haven't we already stolen her away from the world be keeping her trapped in this castle? "I shall deal with Casey as I please," I said firmly. "Until the time being, I would appreciate it if you two would remain indifferent."

"Very well," they both sighed. I gave a sharp nod and exited the room. Before I left, I heard Aro whisper, "Casey would make an excellent queen."

"Indeed she would," Marcus answered.

* * *

"Caius," Casey sang.

"What do you want?" I asked as I looked up from my letters.

"How do you know I want something?"

"You only sing-song your words when you want something."

"Oh." She slumped down defeated. I raised an eyebrow. _Does she even want something or is she simply irritating me? _I cleared my throat. Casey glanced up at me. "Yes?"

"Are you going to tell me what you want or am I simply going to be left in the dark for all eternity wondering what you wanted on December 14th of 2013?"

"I think I will leave you in the darkest corner," she whispers coyly. "Never knowing what my scheming mind wishes for."

"Very well. I guess you will never attain whatever trifle you are longing for." I returned to my papers and waited for Casey to give in. She sighed and leaned forward onto my desk. I looked up at her through her lashes. "I need you to take me to the hair salon," she said reluctantly. "I ran out of shower items."

I remembered my conversation with Aro and Marcus about Casey being a prisoner. My mind was telling me that did not want to travel out to the village but my mouth had other plans. "Go fetch your coat. I will meet you outside your door."

Casey gave a childish squeal and ran out the door. Was she truly that excited about going outside? Does she truly feel like a prisoner in this castle? I brushed off those silly thoughts. _Casey is happy here. She has friends. She has me. _I repeated those thoughts over and over again until I believed them. I sped off to the guest wing of the castle. I stood in front of her door and waited. Inside I could hear her chatting away to her friends on the "phone". She opened the door and gave me a sweet smile. We linked arms and proceeded to make our way down to the village.

When we stepped outside I saw Casey shiver a bit. The wind blew her hair back like a long mane of blonde. As we walked, her breath could be seen in the air. She wrapped her scarf and her tightly and snuggled deeper into her blanket. I watched her nose and cheeks as they became rosy and flushed. We hurried into the nearest hair store and Casey breathed a sigh of relief- obviously pleased that she was out of the cold. She began roaming around the store – examining each product carefully. She sniffed each one carefully and occasionally asked for my opinion – which was always "I don't care".

"How about this one?" Casey asked shoving the bottle up to my nose. It read "Sweet on Paris" and smelled like cheap mortal pastries. I calmly pushed the bottle away from my face and said, "For the hundredth time, I don't care."

"Well you should care because this is what I will smell like for the next month or so." _Wrong. You smell like perfectly ripe wild strawberries. No silly mortal products could ever mask that. _ She continued to examine the bottle. After a moment of silence she said, "I've always wanted to go to Paris. Eat in a small café; have dinner on top of the Eiffel Tower."

I wanted to get her there. I wanted to make her dream – even if it was ridiculously cliché – come true. I looked at her encouragingly. "Who knows, maybe you will someday."

Casey glanced behind my shoulder and glared. "Look who just walked in the door," she muttered to me. I whirled around – ready to protect her from any danger. Instead, I found myself scowling at Lila and Lucie as they examined perfumes. I turned back to Casey and asked, "Do you want to leave?"

"No, I got this one." She gave me a sly smirk and walked off in the girl's direction. _Oh no. What is she planning? _I followed behind her to make sure that she didn't get into trouble. In a fake surprised tone, Casey exclaimed, "Lila! Lucie! I'm surprised to see you here instead of a pet store!"

"Why would we be at the pet store?" Lila sneered.

"Well, considering you're bitches, I figured that the pet store would have better products for you." I was shocked. I watched as Lila stormed out of the store with Lucie on her heel. Casey turned back to me. I was still in my state of shock. But deep inside, I felt proud that Casey told them off. I stared into her blue-grey eyes that could never seem to make up their mind which color they wanted to be. I quickly snapped out of her haze and broke eye contact. Casey quickly bought the "Sweet on Paris" set and hurried back out into the cold. We rushed home before Casey could get too cold. She mumbles something about taking a shower and turned back into her room. Before I could stop myself, I whispered, "You would actually smell like wild strawberries with a hint of cake for the rest of the month."

I cursed myself for saying that. All I could do was hope that Casey hadn't heard that.

* * *

It was a normal day in Volterra. Heidi was to be coming back with the latest food any second. I stared idly at my pale, perfect hands that would soon be snapping the necks of mortals. The huge doors flung open and a group of four humans came in. Since only Aro and I were hungry, Heidi did not spend time finding more humans. I examined each mortal and decided on which two I would feast on. There were two boys and two girls. Each one had brown hair with the exception of one of the girls who had flaming red hair. I sat up straighter in my throne as I prepared to pounce. Then the unexpected happened. The brunette girl stepped forward and cleared her throat. "Excuse me, sir. I simply have a question to ask you."

"Go right ahead," Aro said calmly.

The same girl spoke up again. She sounded slightly familiar but I discarded the thought. _How could I possibly know this mortal?_ "You see, sir, we are looking for our friend. Has a pretty blonde girl taken this tour?"

_I know a pretty blonde girl but she most certainly did NOT take this tour. _Aro smiled sweetly and said, "I'm afraid not, dear."

"Oh, we will just be on our way then," the mortal girl said. _They think they are getting out alive. How sweet. _The double doors slammed shut and I eyed the group hungrily. Then all hell broke loose. Casey jumped out – body wrapped up in a cloak – and began to _sing_.

_How do you do?_

_I've see you've met my_

_Faithful handyman_

_He's just a little brought down_

'_Cause when you knocked_

_He thought you were the _

_Candy man_

After this point, I couldn't even pay attention to the song. Casey had ripped off the cloak and was parading around the room in the tightest, most erotic leather garment I had ever seen. As she sang about "transvestites", I struggled to keep my eyes from wandering to other places. The other mortals quickly followed her lead and began to dance and sing with her. I was completely startled.

Casey ended the songs and turned to the group of mortals. She cried to them, "What the hell? Weren't the red eyes and pale skin a giveaway? God, you guys are so stupid!"

"Do you these people?" Aro asked.

"Yes, this is Jackie, Ally, Connor, and Logan. They are my best friends and I would appreciate it if you didn't eat them." I stared at the group of mortals. _These are Casey's friends? That would explain why Ally sounded familiar. _

"We apologize for our behaviors," Marcus said through he didn't do anything. "Can you forgive us?"

"Of course. It was just one big misunderstanding," one of the mortal boys – Connor – said. Chelsea came through the throne room doors – sending a large gust of air in. I picked up the scent of a werewolf. I growled and tracked the source of the smell to the other mortal boy, Logan. I pounced at Logan and attacked him. _How dare a werewolf defile our sacred home? _We fought on the floor – tossing and scratching at each other. Something, or someone, threw themselves between us. Logan took a swing at me, but missed – hitting the figure. A loud crack and a sickening scream filled the hall. I stopped fighting immediately and Casey fall to the ground. I stared at her unconscious person as Aro and Marcus took her away to her room.

I stormed out of the throne room in anger. _How could I be so stupid? Of course Casey would try to defend her friends. _I slammed my fists against the wall in frustration.

"Please do not damage the wall again," Aro said from behind me. I whirled around to see him and Marcus back from Casey's room. "Before you ask, Casey is perfectly fine except for a broken wing. Her friends came to surprise her for Christmas, yet things didn't go as well as they planned."

"Christmas?"

"Yes, it is a week away," Marcus explained. _That means the ball is coming up soon. And it means Casey has been here for almost three months. How long does it take to eradicate a newborn army? Then again, do I want her to leave? No – no I don't. _"What about the werewolf boy?" I asked.

"He is not actually a werewolf," Aro said. "There is a tribe of 'shifters' that reside near Forks. They are of no harm to humans. Their wolf form is merely coincidental."

"Very well," I sighed. "I suppose they can stay here for the time being."

Aro took my hand. I could feel him reading through my thoughts. He released my hands and said, "You mustn't blame yourself for Casey's injury. It was not your fault."

"If I would have practiced a little self-control, none of this would have happened." I stormed away and began to wander to the halls aimlessly. I had no intentions of returning to my study since the entire place smelled like Casey. Instead I traveled to the Volturi gardens, the one place she hadn't discovered yet. I sat down on a bench and closed my eyes. For the first time in centuries, I wished I could dream. I wished I could be taken away to a place where Casey was mine and no horrors existed.

I don't know how long I sat there – picturing the perfect world, but as soon as I smelled Jane approaching I snapped my red eyes open. She found the bench I was sitting on and said, "Casey has woken up. She request everyone presence in the throne room."

I wondered what could be so drastic that Casey needed everyone to hear. I followed behind Jane to the throne room. I sat down on my throne just as Casey walked in. "I have something important to say. None of my powers work. Once I woke up, nothing was working. Not my fire, not my mind manipulation, even my shield is down."

"So, none of your powers work?" Aro clarifies.

Casey's expression hardened. "No, I just got out of bed, walked down to the throne room, and told you everything as a prank. Yes, none of my powers work!" I stared at her. I had never seen her like this before. Yes, I had seen her angry but this was more…annoyed. "What? You think my behavior is irrational? You're not the one with a broken wing and no powers. Never seen a girl pissed off? Well, welcome to 2013!"

"Casey," I began in an attempt to calm her down.

"Don't you even start with me!" she exclaims. "Weren't you the one who said 'don't blame yourself'? A little hypocritical, aren't we?"

_How did she find out that I blamed myself? Aro and Marcus I am going to kill you. _"I-"

She cut me off before I could finish. "I'm so sick of all of this! I wish I could just be normal!" She stormed out of the throne room before anyone could go after her. I remained seated. I did not know what to do. Casey was right, I was being a hypocrite. I didn't want her to be angry with me. Her words cut like knives. She was angry and distressed and there wasn't anything I could do about it.

We all sat there for hours – never moving. Nobody really knew what to say. In the midst of the silence, Casey came walking back into the throne room. Her hair was ruffled and her eyes were red from crying. I knew something had happened, but I was in no position to ask. She took a deep breath in and said, "I am truly sorry for my actions. I never realized what I had before it was all lost."

"That is alright, dear," Marcus said. Something had happened that calmed Casey down. Inwardly, I hoped it was for the greater good. She nodded her head and left the room. I needed to go after – I needed to apologize. I sped after her and silently came up beside her. She jumped slightly in fright and turned to face me.

I froze up. I couldn't remember anything that I was going to say. Instead of an apology, I blurted out, "As you know, Christmas is coming up soon. Each year, the Volturi host a ball. You must stay in your room. Do you understand?"

"Of course. I'll be in my room, making no noise, pretending that I don't exist," Casey said with a smile.

"Excellent," I said. For a moment, I considered asking her to be my partner to the dance.

_The glistening glasses filled with blood._

_The skirts of ball gowns twirling across the floor. _

_Casey tightly held in my arms…_

I snapped myself away from those thoughts. I turned away and left Casey behind me. "That was a stupid idea anyway. She would have turned you down," I muttered to myself. _Casey would never go to a silly ball with you. Would she?_

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**I am so sorry that I haven't updated! It is so hard to manage three stories at once! Enough with excuses, they are lame. I REALLY hope that you liked this chapter. **

**Let me know what you think about the story by reviewing! I love to get the email saying I have a new review. They really do help me improve my writing!**

**QOTU (Question of the update): Does anyone have good song suggestions? I am at a loss. Right now I am loving "Let Her Go" by Passenger. The acoustic version is amazing!**


	14. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I don't own this.**

* * *

**Recap**

_ The glistening glasses filled with blood._

_ The skirts of ball gowns twirling across the floor. _

_ Casey tightly held in my arms…_

_I snapped myself away from those thoughts. I turned away and left Casey behind me. "That was a stupid idea anyway. She would have turned you down," I muttered to myself. Casey would never go to a silly ball with you. Would she?_

* * *

**Chapter Thirteen**

* * *

_I look stupid._

I stared at my reflection in the mirror. My blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail with black bow. I had traded my normal attire for a much more expensive black and red robe. At times, I wished that I was not required to wear the Volturi's signature colors – red, black, and gold. My favorite color was green – much too many people's surprise. I remembered when I told Casey this small trivial piece of information about myself. She had insisted on "getting to know one another better".

"_So, I already know your favorite band is ACDC, your favorite animal is an owl, and if you were a Greek demigod your mother would be Athena," I recapped. Though I was reluctant to even have this conversation, one look into Casey's stormy eyes and I was blurting out the answers to her silly questions and listening to her random answers in return. "What else is there to know about you?"_

"_There is plenty to know about me!" Casey exclaimed – pretending to be highly offended. "What is my favorite color?"_

_I was at a loss. It was such a simple question – yet I had no answer for it. I thought back to the different colors she had worn while she stayed here. It was a lot of blue and black. I remembered how I liked the way the blue made her eyes stand out. Without giving it that much more thought, I blurted out, "Blue."_

"_Close, that is my second favorite color." She smiled at me – obviously pleased that I was even remotely close to the right answer. Butterflies fluttered around in my stomach at the small act of affection. I mentally cursed myself for acting like a silly teenage boy. I was three thousand years old! I should not be feeling such mundane emotions. Yet somehow, Casey seemed to bring out the feelings I had hidden way centuries ago. I did not like it. "My __**favorite **__color is actually black."_

"_Why?" I asked._

"_To match my soul," she whispered "menacingly" – though she really just sounded like she had a sore throat. "What 'bout you? What is your favorite color, Blondie?"_

"_Green," I answered without a moment's hesitation. _

"_Really?" Casey asked perplexed – her facial features scrunching up, making her look like a confused child. "Why green? I never see you wear it. In fact, you never change your outfit. Do vampires never need to change clothes? Do you ever get tired of wearing the same thing?"_

"_Rather curious today, aren't we?" I asked raising an eyebrow. Casey flushed when she realized how many questions she had just asked. Normally, I found human characteristics, like blushing, repulsive, but with her – I found it very endearing. "If you must know, I have no real reason why I like the color green." Lie. It was the color of my human eyes. "Yes, vampires do need to change outfits, but not often. And no, I do not 'get tired of wearing the same thing'." Another lie. I wished I could wear something different, but Aro demands that we "all look like we are a strong and powerful team". And to him, that meant dressing in the same clothes and colors all the time._

I pulled myself away from my thoughts. I hated wearing these robes. They were the most modern thing that I owned and I greatly preferred wearing older robes. The pants were much tighter and the jacket was shorter than the most the clothes I owned. I put on a simple black mask – since it was a masquerade ball. After I concluded that scowling at my reflection would not do me any good, I slipped out of my room and towards the ballroom. I tried to avoid running into Aro because he would insist on making a grand spectacle of entrance which I had no interest in participating in. instead, I was able to sneak through one of the secluded back doors of the ballroom. I picked up a glass of wine and scanned over the crowd in mild interest. I saw mates laughing and chatting lovingly as they held hands and danced. I mentally wished that Casey and I were like that.

I took a small sip of the human blood before I sat it back down. Human waitresses, dressed in short black dresses, walked around the room with more drinks. It was funny to watch how nervous the new ones were. I remembered back to how carefree and confident Casey was when she first came here. Actually, the first time I saw her she was engulfed in three foot flames…

I sighed and picked up the glass of blood once again. How come all of my thoughts drag me back to Casey?

_You fancy her. You want to hold her and never let her go. You want to kiss her. You want her._

_Shut up._

_You just told yourself to shut up._

_And I am about to do it again. Shut up._

I stopped my agreement with myself and looked back at the crowd of vampires. They were all staring at something to the right. I followed their gaze and saw the most exquisite vampire I had ever seen. Her eyes were a deep maroon – almost purple. Her black her was curled in perfect ringlets and piled on top of her head. A few curls hung down and framed her pale, slim face. Her red dress meticulously accented her curves. The woman's expression was cool and confident, but I could see a glimmer of worry hidden in her eyes. She was the most beautiful creature I had ever seen.

All thoughts of Casey vanished as I watched her descend down the stairs. I could feel the mating bond pulling us together. It was obvious that she didn't feel the same way. She scanned the room briefly before Demetri came up and tapped her on the shoulder. He said something which made her smile as he led her out onto the dance floor. The pair talked quietly as they twirled to the music. I glared at Demetri. _How dare he dance with my mate? _The waltz ended and the couple curtsied before going off in separate directions. I watched from the sidelines as she chatted amiably with the other vampires.

I was acting foolishly. I was obsessing over a woman whose name I didn't even know. I wanted to walk right over there and kiss her, but that would be highly improper and childish. I had to time it right. I only had one shot at impressing her. I barely noticed Athenodora come up beside me.

"Good evening, brother," she said taking a slow sip of her glass of blood. During events such as these, the wives are let out of their tower – as long as they are accompanied by a guard. As usual, Athenodora's guard is nowhere to be found. I was impressed. It usually takes about an hour to lose her guard. She followed my gaze to the mysterious vampire in the red gown. "Are you actually looking at a woman? Who are you and what have you done with my brother?"

I ignored Athenodora and continued to study the beautiful vampire. "What do you know about her?"

"I know her name is Celestia Morgan and she is from London. She was bitten by a riverbank in 1526 and left to die."

_Thank you, sister. You certainly have a vast amount of knowledge on this woman. At least I know her name. Celestia Morgan. It suits her. _Athenodora strolled off as I continued to watch Celestia from across the room. The group of vampires she was chatting with walked off and she stood there alone. A waitress walked by and offered her a glass of blood. She refused. _Odd. _Celestia stood alone and longingly watched the couples dance. Now was my chance.

I casually sped over and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned around and looked up at me. I smiled coolly and introduced myself. "I don't believe we have met. My name is Caius Volturi."

Celestia smiled politely back at me. "It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Celestia Morgan, but you can call me Celeste." A cute British accent clipped her words. _Celeste. Her full name sounds much better._

_Just like Cassandra sounds better than Casey._

The voice in my head stopped me for a brief moment. I thought about Casey who was probably – no, definitely – sitting alone in her room. _She was just a silly infatuation. Your true mate is standing in front of you. _The current song ended and I seized the golden opportunity. "May I have this dance?"

"Certainly." Celestia let me lead her out onto the dance floor. She glanced over my shoulder and stared curiously at something behind me. I turned quickly around and saw a pink haired human waitress walk up to the conductor. She whispered into his ear, "Play a tango. I want to spice things up."

The conductor nodded and the human disappeared back into the crowd.

I gripped Celestia's body and began to twirl her around the room. We seemed to fit perfectly together. She was only slightly shorter than me, which was odd since I was tall. It was almost as if it was made to be. She was a very good dancer. Her long legs easily kept up with my large strides. I dipped her down as the song ended. I slowly pulled her body up close to mine. She was so beautiful. We leaned in closer to each other. Our noses grazed one another's. I stared into her maroon eyes, but there was another color brimmed around the edges.

An all too familiar stormy blue-grey.

My eyes widened in shock and I stormed out of the throne room. _How dare she follow me to this ball? _I heard her foolishly follow behind me. I stood out in the hall and waited for her to catch up. I turned to face her and asked, "Do you think I am a fool?"

She looked up fearfully at me. "What are you talking about?"

I sped up close to her and pulled my fingers through her hair. The cheap mortal hair dye came off onto my fingers- revealing a golden blonde color. "Drop the accent and take off the mask, Casey."

She slowly lifted the red and black mask off of her face. I was horrified at myself for not noticing it earlier. I felt outraged. I screamed at her, "Do you take me as a fool? Was that your goal, to make me look like a fool?"

The Casey that I had bonded with would have made a sarcastic comment, but this Casey was at a complete loss of words. "Caius, I-"

An important question came into my mind as the overwhelming smell of strawberries filled my nostrils. "How did you hide your scent? Heartbeat? Wings? I thought your powers were down, or is that another lie?"

"They are down, but-"

"Don't talk to me, mortal," I snapped. "I will be talking to Aro about assigning you a new protector."

I turned back into the ballroom, leaving Casey alone in the hallway. I no longer needed to protect her. She could get slaughtered by a rogue vampire for all I cared. I stood in the dark corners of the ballroom refusing to socialize with anyone for another hour before I left the ball. I felt compelled to walk by Casey's room.

I heard her sobs before I reached the beginning of the hallway. I could imagine her puffy red eyes and blotchy face shoved into the deep depths of her pillow. I wanted to go and comfort her. Then I remembered the stunt she pulled at the ball tonight and my anger came flooding back. I walked by her room without giving it a second glance. I went to the other side of the wing and went into my room.

I wanted to go and fetch my journal which lay hidden in the secret compartment of my desk, but that would require walking by Casey's room and I didn't think I could do that. Instead, I stayed in my room until the end of the night. I thought about the events that just happened.

_If I felt the mating bond with Celestia – who was really Casey. So that would mean that Casey is my mate._

_Damn it._

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**Sorry this chapter is kind of short. I was going to combine it with another chapter, but I liked how it ended. **

**Poor Caius. It's fun to tap into this side of him, but it is also difficult. I don't want to make him too pathetically weak, but not totally "I hate the world". PLEASE let me know how you think I did through the form of a review!**

**I will only update once I get 5 reviews. That is all I am asking! Just FIVE REVIEWS! You guys can do that right? I know you can!**

**QOTU: If you could have one superpower, what would it be?**

* * *

**PREVIEW**

_I walked by Casey's room. I needed to apologize. Also, she was due in the throne room. When I arrived at her door – I smelled another human in the room. Connor. They were talking and I listened into their conversation._

_"I love you, Connor," I heard Casey whisper. The insides of my stomach clenched up. How easily she said those three words. I love you. Why was love so hard for me?_

_"I love you too, Casey."_

_I walked away before I could hear anything else._


	15. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight**

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**Recap**

_I heard her sobs before I reached the beginning of the hallway. I could imagine her puffy red eyes and blotchy face shoved into the deep depths of her pillow. I wanted to go and comfort her. Then I remembered the stunt she pulled at the ball tonight and my anger came flooding back. I walked by her room without giving it a second glance. I went to the other side of the wing and went into my room._

_I wanted to go and fetch my journal which lay hidden in the secret compartment of my desk, but that would require walking by Casey's room and I didn't think I could do that. Instead, I stayed in my room until the end of the night. I thought about the events that just happened._

**_If I felt the mating bond with Celestia – who was really Casey. So that would mean that Casey is my mate._**

**_Damn it._**

* * *

**Chapter 14**

* * *

_I am mated to Casey. I am mated to Casey. I am mated to Casey. Why me?_ I groaned loudly and banged my head on my desk. I had refused to meet Casey this morning. She had lied to me and that was unforgivable, but at the same time I wanted to be near her. I wanted to hold her and never let her go. I hated myself. _How could I love and hate her at the same time? _I groaned audibly once again and snapped my quill in half – which wasn't that difficult of a task.

Aro walked into my study, followed by Marcus. _What is going on? _Aro sighed. "I believe we owe you an apology."

"Why would you need to apologize?" I questioned. Casey is the one who should be apologizing. Not them. The two exchanged a look, leaving me completely out of the loop. "What?"

"We were the ones who prompted Casey to go to the ball. Well, I was more involved, but Aro knew about it. And so did the rest of the guard…" Marcus admitted. "With the help of her friend Ally, who can manipulate people's memories, we were able to sneak her into the ball. She would have not crashed the ball unless we prompted her."

I was in shock. It wasn't Casey's fault at all. She didn't disobey me…completely. I couldn't think of anything to say. Aro and Marcus stared at me expectantly. I was finally able to blurt out a few words. "Who? Why?"

"Almost all the Volturi, but you and the human servants knew," Aro said. _Great._

"And why," Marcus said softly. "I could see the mating bond between you two for around a week now. It was only a matter of time before you sensed it for yourself."

I was speechless. So it was true. I was mated to Casey - and she hated me. I felt like ripping someone's head off. _Maybe Aro's…_

I jolted forward. The realization hit me like a train. "I need to apologize. Then we can be mates."

"I don't think…" Aro started to say.

Marcus cut him off. "Just let him go. And, Caius, you are due in the throne room. Bring Casey while you are at it."

I left my study in a hurry. I walked by Casey's room. I needed to apologize. Also, she was due in the throne room. When I arrived at her door – I smelled another human in the room. Connor. They were talking and I listened into their conversation.

"I love you, Connor," I heard Casey whisper. The insides of my stomach clenched up. How easily she said those three words. I love you. Why was love so hard for me?

"I love you too, Casey."

I walked away before I could hear anything else. _How dare she say I love you to another man! I always knew those two were together! I am going to kill him. I am going to kill her too. No, I can't do that. _I couldn't even think about them with my stomach clenching up. I angrily walked into the throne room. I sat down on my throne and glared at everyone. Aro and Marcus were smart enough not to say anything.

Casey came strutting into the throne room with her arms linked with Connor. She was dressed in a short black dress and black boots. Her makeup was dark and…sexy. I had used many words to describe Casey – beautiful, irritating, childish, endearing – but never sexy. I tried not to look at her. Instead, I scowled at Connor and turned my attention, but I watched Casey out of the corner of my eye.

"Miss Casey!" Aro exclaimed. "You look wonderful! If you don't mind my asking, are your powers still down?"

"Unfortunately, yes. I believe it has something to do with my broken wing." I felt a sarcastic comment bubble up inside of me, but I restrained myself. I needed to appear as if I was oblivious to the fact that she even existed.

"It seems we have reached the same conclusion," Aro said. He exchanged a quick glance with me and Marcus before he continued. "I assume you are aware that you need a new protector."

"Yes, I am aware of this." Casey stared pointedly at me. I glared back at her.

I admired her blonde hair...

…high cheekbones…

…stormy eyes…

I felt myself faltering under her intense gaze. I wanted to forget that all of this had happened. I wanted to run and embrace her is my arms. But then I saw her arm, clinging to her mortal friend like he was her lifeline. That should be me she loved. Did she not feel the mating bond? Was I forever doomed to love another who would never love me back? I snapped myself out of my hypnotic state. I would not think about her after she had betrayed me in the most horrifying way. I listened back into the conversation.

"Marcus had agreed to be your new protector. Are you alright with that?" Aro asked. _Why does Aro do all the talking? Marcus could have easily said that himself. And why didn't Marcus just "protect" her in the first place? He was obviously up for the job._

I didn't need to here Casey's response to know what it was. She loved Marcus, but not in the way that I loved her. He had become a second father for her and she had brought him out of his secluded shell. I glared at Casey's and Connor's backs as they left the throne room. Right before they left the room, Connor leaned in and whispered, "Penguin" into her ear.

For reasons unknown, Casey cracked up laughing – almost doubling over onto the floor. I felt the familiar surge of jealous course through my body. _Why didn't she laugh with me like that? What is the significance of the word "penguin"? If I randomly said the word, would I get the same reaction? Probably not. _In a fit of anger, I hurdled myself off my throne. I broke the wooden table nearby into a million tiny pieces before storming out of the room through the back entrance.

I hoped to never see Casey again, but I knew there was no way I could do that.

* * *

_**Six months. That is how long it had been since I have talked to **_her_** last. I refused to lower myself and apologize to **_her_**. I had done it once in the past and I had no intention of doing it again. I had nothing to apologize for; therefore **_she_** would be the one to break down first. It was not like **_she_** hadn't tried to get my attention. **_She_** tried everything – jealousy, sex appeal, and clumsiness. None of it had an effect on me – besides the second attempt previously stated. But **_she_** did not know that had an effect on me. I pointedly ignored **_her _**frivolous attempts until **_she_** simply stopped. Nothing. **_She_** stopped talking, looking, and probably thinking about me. Instead, **_she_** spent her time with **_her_** friends and Marcus. **_Her_** mortal friends had enrolled in the local community college, even though they could not speak a single bit of Italian. In **_her_** free time **_she_** spent **_her_** days with the guard or **_her_** mortal friends – sometimes even a mixture of both. Of course, most of **_her_** time was spent with Marcus. The two had grown increasingly close over the last six months.**_

She_** still had that broken wing, though it was almost completely healed by now. In my opinion, it had taken an awfully long time for that wing to heal, but according to Aro, **_she_** had broken all seven bones that made it up. **_Her_** powers are still down too. I knew **_she_** hated being so weak, but **_her_** powers should return to **_her_** soon since **_her_** large black wing will be healed in a few weeks.**_

_**Sometimes I wondered when **_she_** will leave. It had taken the Cullens an awfully long time to rid themselves of this rogue vampire and her newborn army. I had half a mind to send troops over and demolish them ourselves. But then **_she_** would have to leave and I do not think I could bear to see **_her_** leave. Though **_her_** name brings sorrow and anger to my broken soul, I cannot imagine a life without **_her_** by my side.**_

I closed the journal, sighed, and then groaned. I was growing weary of constantly ignoring her_**. **_Why wouldn't she simply apologize for her mistake and run back into my arms? But deep down in my cold, dead heart, I knew she would never do that. She was already under an excruciating amount of stress and I doubted that I was her top priority. Midsummer's Night was approaching fast and she had – rather stupidly in my opinion – signed up for a talent show that very same night. Her mortal band friends were all performing in the show with her. I had heard her complaining numerous times that the song they were performing was too "mainstream pop", whatever that meant.

I left my study and started the trek to the music room, where I knew her and her friends would be practicing. I wanted to hear her sing since it was the only way I could hear her lovely voice, but I also knew Connor would be there. Laughing, joking, and flirting with her like he did every time they were together. I wanted to be in his shoes. He always seemed to know exactly what to say to her and exactly when to say it. I turned the corner and collided with other person.

It was her.

She started to fall back, but I quickly snatched her wrist before she could hit her head. She looked up at me with wide, sad eyes. _Damn it. This is the last thing I need. I am supposed to be mad at you for fraternizing with another male when I am your mate. _We didn't say anything – just stared. _Maybe she would apologize. Maybe we could put this whole thing behind us. _But she did not say anything. Instead, she stabilized herself and walked away. I pretended not to see the tears in her eyes.

For a moment, I forgot what I was doing. I followed her secretly. I watched her walk into the outstretched arms of Connor as he soothed her. Her sobs echoed through the hall as Connor whispered calming nonsense into her ears. She looked up at the tall mortal boy – her grey eyes spilling with tears. He gave her a small smile and softly kissed her forehead. She rolled her eyes and smiled. The two held hands as they walked into the music room together.

I was furious. _How dare that stupid mortal kiss my mate? I should be the one kissing away her tears! Why was she crying in the first place? It couldn't be because of…me. No, that is ridiculous. She is being stubborn and ignoring me because she thinks I am going to apologize first. Well she is very wrong._

_I will never apologize to her._

* * *

It was Midsummer's Night, yet I seemed to be the only person who cared about the prophecy. Everyone else was getting ready to watch "The Flock" – also known as her band – go perform. It was stupid of her to go out tonight, much less perform. She had much more important things to worry about than a stupid talent show. For that reason, I refused to leave the palace. To say the least, Aro was not pleased with this decision.

"But you must come," Aro stated. "Everyone else is going."

"Does it look like I care?" I asked.

"You need to get over this feud with Miss –"

"Don't say her name," I hissed. "I will not be going to the silly mortal concert because I do not wish to be with a group of ridiculous humans who actually think that they possess some form of talent."

"Even of one of those 'ridiculous mortals' is your mate?"

"She is not my mate," I said coldly. _Lie. I do not know what I would do without her. _I glared at Aro. "If you would excuse me, I have work that I need to do and I believe that you have a show to attend."

"Very well," Aro sighed sadly. "Feel free to come if you change your mind."

"I wouldn't bet on it." The other vampire left the room. In truth, I had no idea what I would do for five hours. I glanced over at the clock in the back of my study. Make that four hours and 59 minutes. I pulled a few books from my extensive collection and tried to read them. I couldn't make it past the first page. I had pulled Beauty and the Beast – the first book she ever read here. I closed it and relished the smell of wild strawberries.

I could picture her so clearly. She had worn the most ridiculous outfit on that first day. It was a very short dress with high boots that she struggled to walk in. Her blonde hair was long, flat and straight. It had bounced when she walked. I remembered how much I had hated my job of babysitting her. Now, I would give anything to go back to those days.

Subconsciously, I walked to her room. On top of her bed, a beat-up notebook lied thrown open. I knew it wasn't right to look at her songbook, but I couldn't help it. I picked up the book and flipped through the pages. Some of the songs I had recognized, but many were unfamiliar. I stopped at one of the most recent songs and read. I nearly dropped the book.

The song was titled "Enchanted". As I read, memories of the ball flashed through my head. Then I remembered she only wrote about personal experiences. The song was about us. It was about us. The last few lyrics stuck in my mind.

_This is me praying that  
This was the very first page  
Not where the story line ends  
My thoughts will echo your name  
Until I see you again  
These are the words I held back  
As I was leaving too soon  
I was enchanted to meet you_

Please don't be in love with someone else  
Please don't have somebody waiting on you  
Please don't be in love with someone else  
Please don't have somebody waiting on you

This night is sparkling, don't you let it go  
I'm wonderstruck, blushing all the way home  
I'll spend forever wondering if you knew  
This night is flawless, don't you let it go  
I'm wonderstruck, dancing around all alone  
I'll spend forever wondering if you knew  
I was enchanted to meet you

Please don't be in love with someone else  
Please don't have somebody waiting on you

She wanted me. It was never Connor. It was always me. She wanted me. I was overjoyed. No words could describe the sheer bliss that I was feeling inside. I wanted to rush over to the mortal talent show and tell her how much I loved her.

I loved Casey.

It felt so nice to be able to think her name without an overload of anger and sadness flooding my body. Now it was only love. I loved Casey.

_But she thinks you hate her._

I froze. The voice in my head was right. I couldn't just confront her; I needed to do something special to win her affection back. I did something extravagant. I searched my memories for anything that could work. Then it hit me – and I mean this in the most literal way.

My head had knocked it a shelf and down toppled her body lotion - the same kind that we bought in the hair store many months ago. I read the cartoony label, _Sweet on Paris. _That was it. Casey said that she always wanted to go to Paris. I would take her to Paris. I caught sight of myself in the mirror and remembered that one very important detail.

_Casey thinks you hate her._

I don't know how long I spent rehearsing speeches that I could say to her. I knew that I had said that I would not apologize, but that was before I found out she loved me. When I was finally satisfied with one of the 50 speeches I planned, I raced out of her room and to the exit. But a devastated group of vampires and humans stopped me.

All the vampires – Aro, Marcus, Jane, Demetri, Felix, Alec, and Heidi – looked as if they wanted to cry, but being vampires they obviously couldn't. Casey's human friends – Jackie, Ally, Connor, and Logan – were sobbing. Well, Jackie and Ally were balling while Connor and Logan tried to stay brave and not cry. _Did they lose the show? Was it really that bad? Wait. Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. _One person was not there. One very beautiful, very amazing, very loving person.

"Where is Casey?" I demanded, expecting the worst. At the sound of her name, loud sobs from Jackie and Ally echo through the silent halls. Aro pulls a folded up piece of paper out of his coat pocket. He hesitantly hands me the paper. I opened it up and my dead heart skipped a beat.

_**Dear Volturi,**_

_**If you are reading this note, you have discovered that Casey is gone. I was surprised at how easy it was to kidnap her from right under your noses. Aren't you supposed to be the leaders of the entire vampire race? I suppose I should explain myself a little bit more.**_

_**My name is Lila Goldberg. Yes, the same Lila that was "best friends" with that dumb mortal Lucie who Caius and Casey met at the shoe store many months ago. You may be thinking - why did this human just refer to Lucie as a "mortal"? That is because I am a vampire with the gift to appear human. And much like your precious "Angel", I can go past shields.**_

_**Another question you may have is why did this vampire take Casey away? It is a simple answer really. As you know, Casey was taken away from her family and raised at the Human Enhancement and Learning Laboratory, or H.E.L.L. for short. I am the leader of the organization. Casey was always meant to return when she reached the age of twenty since she was the most advanced out of the three girls. Though Jackie and Ally are scientific miracles, Casey was always the best. **_

_**When I found out that Casey had been transferred to Volterra to stay with the Volturi, it complicated my plans a bit. I had to improvise. I sent that imbecile vampire Paul to slaughter Maggie and lure Casey into my trap, but Caius had to come with her. He was always there. When Casey started going out into the city with only one guard – Jane, I believe – I knew it was time to strike. I tricked the mortal science experiment into signing up to for the mortal talent show on Midsummer's Night. I knew about the prophecy and I was going to take advantage of it. **_

_**I arrived in her room after the performance at midnight. I offered her a choice: come with me or I will expose vampires to the entire world. The exposure would be so big that not even the Volturi would be able to cover it up. Casey made the noble choice and decided to come with me. As a woman of my word, I took her away and didn't show a single mortal that I was a vampire.**_

_**I am taking her back to H.E.L.L. Don't try to find us, you never will. You need not worry; I have no plans to kill her. I only plan to keep her for eternity to try new enhancements on her. But one thing is certain: you will never see you precious Casey again.**_

_**Lila**_

I had no words. I didn't even know what I could say. Casey wasn't gone – she couldn't be gone. We loved each other. She isn't gone. I let the paper fall from my hands. Casey wasn't gone. She was going to come back. I am going to find her. I would spend eternity searching for her if that was what it took.

Casey wasn't gone.

She couldn't be.

We loved each other.

She isn't gone.

She can't be.

* * *

**Oh no! Casey is gone! What is going to happen? How is Caius going to take it? If you want to read this story from Casey's point of view (though I will warn you, my writing style has greatly improved since then so that story kind of stinks), feel free to go check it out.**

**I REALLY love to hear what you guys think about this story. Last time I asked for five reviews and you delivered just that! This time I am going to ask for another five reviews. You've done it before so there is no reason why you can't do it again.**

**QOTU: How do you think Caius is going to handle Casey's kidnapping? Let me know in the form of a review of PM.**

**Also, feel free to PM me with an questions/comments/concerns you may have. I will try to answer them to the best of my abilities.**


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